With the changing demographics of the American workforce, the National Science Foundation, along with the U.S. Department of Commerce, has highlighted the shortage of minorities in information technology (IT) careers (http://www.ta.doc.gov/Reports/itsw/itsw.pdf). Using data from a 6-year period and the psychology Involvement-Regimen-Self…

In this monograph, I discuss the current and historic under-representation of economically disadvantaged students, students of color, students from ethnic minorities, and students with limited English proficiency in programs for gifted students. I examine the likely causes of the under-representation of these students, drawing on research and…

A mission of public schools is to produce students who are intellectually competent and prepared for postsecondary education and the increasingly competitive workforce. An urgent concern among education takeholders today is the underrepresentation of African Americans, Hispanics, and Native Americans among high-achieving students. Despite…

This monograph, one of a series on youth with disabilities and the juvenile justice system, reviews current data on disabilities requiring special education and related supports. Statistics on the prevalence of juvenile crime are followed by statistics on the prevalence of special education disabilities in the system, specifically specific…

This paper is based on various Council for Advancement of Adult Literacy (CAAL) activities including in-depth review of six exemplary career ladder programs offered in various institutional settings: a union, a hospital, a community-based organization (CBO), and three community colleges in partnership with an array of medical centers. The programs…

This digest briefly discusses the identification of students who are gifted, difficulties in the identification process, appropriate identification practices, and procedures that can help with identification. First, it stresses that identification must be the means to securing appropriate services for the student, not an end in itself. The paper…

This guide for administrators addresses the problem of the frequent over-identification of African American students as disabled resulting in over-representation of this population in special education programs. The guide focuses on preventive strategies--specifically, how administrators may use the prereferral intervention process, school…

This survey of 1,627 educators and 1,503 non-educators found stereotypical attitudes and prejudices toward African American males, in the categories of athletics, crime, education, music, attitude, family, personality, and sexual prowess. Teachers are urged to become aware of negative black male stereotypes they may harbor, which…

This paper presents nationally representative information about the extent of disproportionate gender representation in special education for the disability conditions of learning disabilities, mental retardation, and emotional disturbance. Recommendations are made for research to elucidate the basis for differences, improved data collection and…

In examining the disproportionate representation of minority groups in special education, this article recommends the inclusion of philosophical and ethical perspectives to broader theoretical paradigms and the open acknowledgement in research efforts that issues related to ethnicity, race, and language background are highly contentious in our…

The present overrepresentation of African American males in the U.S. justice system, combined with racial disproportionality on measures of school discipline, provide compelling reasons for continued scrutiny of connections between the two areas. Although previous studies have revealed powerful insights about the salience of culture, particularly…

We explored whether women were equally represented in leadership roles in college student governance at 21 Midwestern comprehensive universities. We surveyed the college student governments and asked them to report how many women participated in governance, and how many had been president, vice president and more. Our analyses showed that, while…

This study is an examination of the relationship between gender and participation in high school and college instrumental jazz ensembles. Student demographic and attitudinal information was collected using the researcher-designed Instrumental Jazz Participation Survey (IJPS). Undergraduate college band students (N = 628) representing 15 programs…

In spite of the best efforts of educators, too few African-American students are academically succeeding in the science classroom. Ultimately, this lack of achievement has contributed to an under-representation of African-Americans with science degrees and science occupations. This article presents a survey that provides insight into what can help…

Social class is a major determining factor of accomplishment in most educational, employment, and social arenas and still one of the best predictors of who will achieve success, prosperity, and social status. Yet, despite its continued significance, social class is rarely as well considered as the related analytic vectors of gender and race,…