Race and Ethnicity of College and University Presidents Over Time
In 1986, Whites represented 91.9 percent of all college and university presidents. While Whites remained the majority in 2016, their representation declined as the presidency became more racially and ethnically diverse. In 2016, 83.2 percent of all presidents identified as White and 16.8 percent identified as people of color.
Report Links
Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education: A Status Report
Chapter Ten: Postsecondary Faculty and Staff
Chapter Ten Report Download (PDF) 3.3 MB
Chapter Ten Data Tables Download (XLSX) 144 KB
Source
American Council on Education, American College President Study 2017
Notes:
Data on individuals of more than one race were not collected prior to 2001.
In 2016, ACE introduced a new racial and ethnic category to allow presidents to identify as Middle Eastern or Arab American.
