S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
9822
I N A S S E M B L Y
February 13, 2020
___________
Introduced by M. of A. ROZIC -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Higher Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to establishing the
office for diversity and educational equity
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
the "Increasing Diversity in Higher Education Act of 2019".
§ 2. Legislative intent. The legislature hereby finds that the state
university of New York has not fully met the growing demand placed on
the university system to train the next generation workforce of our
state. Simultaneously, the university system is faced with an
unprecedented rate of minority and low-income student enrollment, high
rates of student dropouts, larger numbers of students completing college
after six years or more, and a situation where only 32 out of 100 white
students and only 11 of every 100 Hispanic and African-American students
are graduating from college. The economic impact on our state and the
nation of these dynamics are tremendously negative and threaten the
fabric of our civil society and national security.
Over the past decade, the state university of New York has experienced
a steady rise in the number of traditionally underrepresented students.
By the year 2016, figures from the United States census and other data
indicate that the majority of New York high school graduates will be
from groups that have been historically underrepresented in SUNY. This
demographic shift and a need to train a competitive New York workforce
present public higher education policy makers with a challenge. It is
clear that New York must reduce educational inequities faced by minority
and low-income students from historically marginalized groups while
simultaneously maintaining the highest of educational standards. This
huge demographic change must be addressed by policy makers as the state
university of New York is not prepared to increase the academic achieve-
ment and educational attainment of historically marginalized groups.
Data compiled on college access and success show that New York is
doing better than most states for those 25 years of age and older but
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10482-01-9
A. 9822 2
not for younger, low-income and fastest growing populations. According
to 2009 data compiled by the Education Trust, New York's four-year grad-
uation rate for African-Americans is 22 percent and 17 percent for
Hispanics. The six-year graduation rate more than doubles, however,
most of these students will have compromised their academic achievement
and dramatically reduced their opportunities to pursue post-secondary
education based on their low grades.
The percentage of individuals from traditionally underrepresented
groups who are attending SUNY is lower given their numbers in the state
population. Consequently, any initiatives designed to maximize access to
affordable, quality education should make special efforts to recruit
students from these underserved sectors of the state's population. In
its official publications SUNY recognizes its responsibility to employ a
workforce and educate a student body that is representative of the
state's population. However, SUNY has not been able to recruit and
retain senior administrators, faculty, graduate and undergraduate
students in sufficient numbers to overcome the long-standing under-re-
presentation of people of color.
For example, the Hispanic population of New York grew by 33.1 percent
between 1990 and 2000, and made up 15.1 percent of the state's popu-
lation. By 2006, Hispanics made up 16.1 percent of the state's popu-
lation. Yet, Hispanics accounted for only five percent of the student
population in the state-operated/funded campuses of SUNY. African-Amer-
icans are also underrepresented in SUNY, although their percentages are
better than those for Hispanics. In 2006, 14,737 African-Americans
attended SUNY state-operated/funded campuses, and accounted for seven
percent of the student population. African-Americans comprised 17.4
percent of the state's population in 2006. As is the case with Hispan-
ics, Blacks are also seriously underrepresented in the SUNY campuses.
The figures on African-Americans and Hispanic student enrollments in
SUNY universities and colleges are consistent with the findings
published in an Education Trust study of public flagship universities
that documents disproportionate under-representation of low-income and
minority students. The report observes that flagship public universities
are failing to make progress "in better serving the vast breadth of our
citizenry." New York state should provide SUNY with the resources to
implement effective strategies and best practices, so that it can stand
as an exception to this discouraging national trend in public higher
education.
The problem is just as acute within African-American and Hispanic
representation in the faculty ranks of the state-operated/funded campus-
es which also fail to reflect the composition of the state's population.
In the doctoral institutions the percentages for full time Black and
Hispanic employees are 14.9 percent and 2.7 percent, respectively. For
the research university centers the figures are 6.8 percent African-Am-
erican and 2.4 percent Latino. An analysis of Hispanic faculty employ-
ment by a member of the New York state assembly recently revealed that
SUNY lags substantially behind the state's private universities and the
city university of New York in the number of Hispanics in its full time
professional ranks.
It is the finding of this legislature that in order for the state
university of New York to address the problems cited above, the univer-
sity system must engage in a system-wide effort to increase faculty and
student diversity and improve its student success rates. In order to
begin such work, SUNY must put in place a vice chancellor for the office
of diversity and educational equity who will report directly to the
A. 9822 3
chancellor. Just as major public and private university systems across
the United States have hired and provided substantial resources and
authority to a chief diversity officer, SUNY must follow the lead of
these successful university and college programs in order to remain
competitive and fulfill its mission of training New York's future work-
force, while also improving the economic outlook for all the communities
it is entrusted to serve.
§ 3. The opening paragraph of subdivision 1 of section 352 of the
education law is designated paragraph a and a new paragraph b is added
to read as follows:
B. (1) THERE IS HEREBY ESTABLISHED AN OFFICE FOR DIVERSITY AND EDUCA-
TIONAL EQUITY IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE STATE UNIVERSITY. SUCH OFFICE
SHALL BE ESTABLISHED BY THE STATE UNIVERSITY TRUSTEES AND SHALL ADVISE
THE TRUSTEES AND THE CHANCELLOR ON ISSUES RELATED TO INCREASING FACULTY,
STAFF AND STUDENT DIVERSITY IN THE STATE UNIVERSITY SYSTEM AND ENSURING
EDUCATIONAL EQUITY IN THE STATE UNIVERSITY SYSTEM. THE HEAD OF THE
OFFICE FOR DIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL EQUITY SHALL BE A VICE CHANCELLOR
WHO SHALL REPORT DIRECTLY TO THE CHANCELLOR OF THE STATE UNIVERSITY.
FURTHERMORE, THERE SHALL BE INCLUDED IN THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK
BUDGET PROPOSAL TO THE GOVERNOR AND TO THE DIVISION OF THE BUDGET AN
APPROPRIATION FOR EACH STATE FISCAL YEAR TO FUND AND SUPPORT THE OPERA-
TION OF THE OFFICE FOR DIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL EQUITY.
(2) THE VICE CHANCELLOR OF THE OFFICE FOR DIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL
EQUITY SHALL ANNUALLY, ON OR BEFORE JANUARY FIRST, SUBMIT A REPORT TO
THE GOVERNOR AND THE LEGISLATURE DETAILING THE CURRENT EFFORTS TO
INCREASE DIVERSITY AS THEY RELATE TO THE HIRING AND EMPLOYMENT OF FACUL-
TY AND STUDENT ENROLLMENT AT ALL CAMPUSES OF THE COLLEGES AND UNIVERSI-
TIES OF THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK. SUCH REPORT SHALL INCLUDE, BUT
NOT BE LIMITED TO:
(I) MINORITY ENROLLMENT AT EACH CAMPUS;
(II) MINORITY WITHDRAWALS AND DISMISSALS AT EACH CAMPUS;
(III) THE SIZE OF THE MINORITY FRESHMAN CLASS AT EACH CAMPUS;
(IV) THE NUMBERS OF MINORITIES WHO GRADUATE AFTER FOUR YEARS, FIVE
YEARS AND SIX YEARS AT EACH CAMPUS;
(V) THE NUMBER OF FACULTY POSITIONS FILLED BY MINORITIES AT EACH
CAMPUS; AND
(VI) THE NUMBER OF MINORITY FACULTY HIRED BY EACH CAMPUS, AND THEIR
SALARY RATE AND TITLE.
ALL INFORMATION SHALL BE FURTHER BROKEN DOWN BY CAMPUS, GENDER AND
ETHNICITY.
§ 4. This act shall take effect immediately.