University Administrators’ Perceptions on Social Inequalities and Retention of First-Year African American Students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)

Low retention rates of African American students in U.S. higher education institutions remain an issue, with researchers exploring possible contributing factors, including social inequalities. This qualitative descriptive study explored the perspectives of administrators from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) on the unique barriers African American students face in the HBCU context, including financial hardship, academic unpreparedness, and limited opportunities for social integration. Data were collected through detailed, voice-recorded, semistructured interviews conducted via Zoom with administrators, including provosts, presidents, and directors from 12 current and former HBCUs, to explore how policies initially perceived as unfavorable could positively impact institutional leadership and decision-making. The results of the three research questions were reported in nine themes: academic mentoring and acclimation; economic deprivation and financial aid; college affordability; retention support initiatives for first-year students; institutional and individual strategies; welcoming and financially constrained; formal and informal interactions; planning, collaborating, and supporting; and mentoring, tutoring, and practice. The results indicated that many African American students enrolled in HBCUs suffer from social injustices that prevent them from attending college, or they have insufficient knowledge about processes that will permit them to receive financial assistance. Participants’ descriptions of how social inequalities can be decreased on HBCU campuses conveyed that institutional and individual strategies must focus on building awareness among college personnel of the challenges students face and among students of the services available to them that can decrease the negative impact of social injustices.