Report: ‘Whiteness Rules’ in Selecting Presidents

A new report by the College Futures Foundation can be summed up by its title: “Whiteness Rules: Racial Exclusion in Becoming an American College President.”

The report says, “The white man archetype of presidential leadership perpetuates racial inequity by sending racialized messages about who can and should apply for a college presidency” and by “positioning white men as the ‘natural’ choice.”

Also, the report says that colleges “privileg[e] candidates who come through academic affairs roles, where there is limited racial diversity at each key level (department chair, dean, provost, other senior officers in academic affairs)” and judge “candidates of color as risky and white candidates as safe choices.”