In academia, diversity doesn’t just happen. It has to be a core value of the institution. And you have to live it.
Woodbury University was founded in 1884 as a non-profit institution. From the start, it believed in gender equity and its inaugural class was roughly 50% male and female. This commitment to diversity was very unusual at that time. So it is no surprise that we also embrace ethnic diversity. It is part of our DNA, with students from over 40 countries providing an exciting atmosphere that reflects the cultural diversity of Southern California.
And we are also an HSI. What is an HSI? For a college or university to be deemed an HSI – a Hispanic-Serving Institution – is both a responsibility and a privilege. As defined by the federal Higher Education Act, an HSI is a degree-granting institution with a full-time equivalent undergraduate enrollment that is at least 25 percent Hispanic. Precious few private universities in the Los Angeles area – home to the nation’s greatest concentration of Hispanic and Latino students – carry that designation. Most HSIs in my state are members of the California State University system, but it matters greatly to the larger community – and the nation – that HSIs count private institutions large and small among their members.
In addition, Woodbury is proud to be a member of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU), reflecting our historic commitment to diversity. Last fall, the White House recognized Woodbury, along with more than 400 other colleges and universities across the country whose Hispanic student population exceeds 25 percent. Hispanics currently comprise 26.4 percent of the undergraduate population at Woodbury, and California is home to 152 HSIs. As President Obama’s proclamation noted, in the last several years, college enrollment among Hispanics hit a record high, and today, it continues to grow.
Consider the numbers: according to HACU, more than 3.0 million Hispanics were enrolled in non-profit institutions in 2014, including Puerto Rico. In 2014, 435 institutions met the federal enrollment criterion, enrolling 1.8 million Hispanics. HSIs include nearly 13 percent of non-profit colleges and universities, but enroll nearly 22 percent of all students and roughly 61 percent of all Hispanic students. As of 2014, approximately one-third of Hispanics 25 and over had not completed high school, compared to about 7 percent of non-Hispanic whites. Fifteen percent of Hispanics have at least a bachelor’s degree and just under 5 percent an advanced degree, compared to 36 percent and 13 percent for non-Hispanic whites. Some 70 percent of Hispanic high school graduates ages 16-24 were enrolled in college in 2012, compared to 66 percent for whites.
Overall, Hispanics comprise 17.3 percent of the U.S. population. The Hispanic community
experienced 50 percent growth from 2000-2012, largest of all population groups except Asian-Americans.
In recognition of this vital constituency, Woodbury has initiated a new High School Hispanic Counselor Scholarship at 15 Los Angeles area high schools. Our commitment to provide grants to deserving students doesn’t end there. We plan to promote these scholarships actively, formalize a process that engages students and alumni in recruiting, and expand outreach to principals and counselors in high schools. We are also rolling out a new student marketing team, whose members will return to their high schools and community colleges, sharing the message that Woodbury is a place of academic excellence that embraces diversity and a value-for-money ethic. That is one of the reasons why Money Magazine ranks Woodbury 15th in the nation as a “College that Adds the Most Value.”
I echo the sentiments of HACU president and CEO Dr. Antonio R. Flores, who lauded the contributions of HSIs “in educating the future workforce of this nation.” In 1992, HACU led the effort to convince Congress to formally recognize campuses with high Hispanic enrollment as federally designated HSIs and to begin targeting federal appropriations to those campuses.
In short, for more than 130 years we have believed that every socio-economic group deserves respect, attention and cultivation. As an HSI, Woodbury is especially dedicated to embracing a population that is both growing and, on a broader basis, historically underserved.
In the months and years ahead, our institution intends to lead by living our commitment as the region’s foremost private HSI.