Race, Ethnicity, and Education Statistics in the United States

Introduction

Free public primary and secondary education in the United States was established to ensure that all Americans have access to educational opportunity and are equipped to fully participate in our democracy. However, historical and contemporary factors have resulted in persistent racial disparities in educational experiences and attainment. Laws banning enslaved people from being taught to read, exclusionary Jim Crow laws, and the ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson entrenched racial segregation of public schools in the South, and, while not mandated by law, a de facto system of segregation became commonplace in Northern states at the same time. These systems were used to deprive people of color of the educational resources required to prosper in society throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Nearly 70 years after the landmark ruling in Brown v. Board of Education that ended legal school segregation, substantial racial disparities in educational opportunity and attainment still exist. Recognizing these disparities and understanding their determinants is important because they have stark implications for labor market outcomes, including employment, wages and earnings, and occupations and job quality, all key factors in individuals’ economic wellbeing.

Since education is the bedrock of labor productivity, policies that raise the quality and quantity of education for underserved groups have and would boost productivity for the country as a whole. One well-cited study finds that 40 percent of per capita GDP growth from the period of 1960 to 2010 can be accounted for by women and Black men entering into highly skilled occupations. Although disparity in access to high quality education is only one of many barriers faced by workers of color, these findings demonstrate the potential magnitude of the gains that would come from better fostering the talent innate in our future workforce. Indeed, researchers from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco estimate that removing racial gaps in educational attainment alone-separate from any effect on employment or hours-would have increased GDP in 2019 by $190 billion.

This article examines racial and ethnic disparities in educational achievement and attainment, exploring trends in K-12 and postsecondary education. It also discusses the underlying determinants of these disparities, including socioeconomic status, school quality, neighborhood factors, discriminatory practices, teacher expectations, and implicit bias.

Racial Disparities in Elementary and Secondary Education

Childhood educational experiences have been shown to shape academic outcomes in adolescence and later in life, impacting indicators of well-being far into adulthood. Racial differences in childhood educational experiences thus have the potential to place children of different races on different trajectories at an early age, making it more difficult for some to achieve economic security in adulthood than others.

Although school enrollment rates are similar across race and ethnicity for three- to five-year-old children, research indicates that substantial gaps in reading and math achievement exist at the beginning of kindergarten. Black-white gaps in reading and math are about one-half and three-quarters of a standard deviation, respectively, and Hispanic-white gaps in both subjects are similarly large. Gaps between students of any other race, a diverse category which includes Asian, Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander, and American Indian/Alaska Native children in addition to children of multiple races, and white students are about 0.4 standard deviations for both reading and math.

While the Black-white and Hispanic-white gaps for reading and math are similar at the beginning of elementary school, the Black-white gaps widen as students progress through secondary school while the Hispanic-white gaps shrink. The Black-white gaps in reading and math expand from 0.53 and 0.73 standard deviations, respectively, in the fall of kindergarten to 0.95 and 1 standard deviations, respectively, in the spring of 8th grade. In contrast, the Hispanic-white reading and math gaps fall from 0.48 and 0.76 to 0.36 and 0.44, respectively, over the same period.

Most of the widening of the Black-white gaps occurs in elementary school, with evidence of little change after eighth grade. Similarly, most of the narrowing of the Hispanic-white gaps occurs early in elementary school, and research shows the gaps continue to narrow (less rapidly) as students progress through middle and high school. These patterns, coupled with evidence that gains early in elementary school are concentrated among recent immigrants and students with low levels of English proficiency, have led some scholars to conclude that the improvements among Hispanic students are likely driven in part by the development of English language skills among these students.

In addition to highlighting trends in achievement gaps as students progress through school, it is important to understand how achievement gaps have changed over time for students in a given grade. In 2003, the gaps between white and Black 4th grade reading and math scores were 31 and 27 points, respectively. By 2009, both gaps had closed to 26 and stayed relatively constant throughout the 2010s before widening to 28 (reading) and 29 (math) in 2022, likely due to differential impacts of pandemic-related learning disruptions. In contrast, the Hispanic-white gaps in reading and math have been steadily closing over the last 20 years, improving from 28 and 22, respectively, in 2000 to 22 and 21 in 2022.

Prior to 2011, the scores of Asian and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students were reported together, and students in this combined group performed similarly to if not slightly better than white students in both reading and math. However, as evident from the trends for students in these two groups reported separately after 2011, this aggregation masks important heterogeneity, with Asian students consistently outperforming white students in both reading and math and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students consistently lagging behind.

High school completion rates are another important measure of academic achievement in secondary school since high school completion is required for many jobs and to pursue postsecondary education. Since 1992, the percent of adults 25-years-old and older who have graduated from high school has increased for all racial and ethnic groups, with the largest improvements occurring among Black and Hispanic individuals, the groups with the lowest completion rates in 1992. High school completion rates increased from 68 percent in 1992 to 91 percent in 2021 for Black individuals and from 53 percent to 74 percent over that same period for Hispanic individuals. While there is still a relatively large gap in the Hispanic high school completion rate relative to others, it is clear that progress has been and continues to be made on this dimension.

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Racial Disparities in Postsecondary Education

Racial disparities in education persist beyond high school and into postsecondary education and are evident in the differences in college enrollment rates. College premiums remain high, such that these differences in enrollment and graduation rates will contribute to large disparities in lifetime earnings.

Overall, the share of young adults enrolled in college has increased over the last three decades, with the largest gains occurring for Black and Hispanic individuals. In 1990, 25 percent of Black 18- to 24-year-olds were enrolled in college or graduate school, and by 2020, that number had risen to 36 percent. Over the same period, the share of Hispanic young adults enrolled in college or graduate school more than doubled from 16 percent to over 35 percent. White and Asian young adults, who had the highest rates of college enrollment in 1990, experienced smaller gains of roughly 6 to 7 percentage points, as did American Indian/Alaska Native young adults. In contrast, the enrolled share of Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander young adults and those belonging to two or more races declined between 2010 and 2020 from 36 percent to 34 percent and from 38 percent to 34 percent, respectively.

In addition to comparing overall college enrollment rates, it is important to consider the types of schools students enroll in. Students may enroll in institutions of different levels (two-year or four-year) and type (not-for-profit or for-profit). Given evidence of higher returns to an additional year of schooling at four-year institutions than at two-year institutions and evidence that attending a for-profit institution may lead to worse post-college labor market and financial outcomes than not attending college at all, differential enrollment patterns by race and ethnicity may lead to lasting differences in economic security post-college.

Asian and white undergraduates, along with undergraduates of two or more races are most likely to be enrolled at four-year institutions. In contrast, Hispanic, American Indian/Alaska Native, Black, and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander undergraduates are most likely to be enrolled at two-year institutions, although, notably, the share of Hispanic students enrolled at two-year institutions is nearly 10 percentage points larger than the share of Black students enrolled at these institutions. Black and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students are much more likely than any other group to enrolled at for-profit institutions, both two- and four-year.

These differences in enrollment patterns contribute to the racial differences in bachelor’s degree attainment. Since 1990, the percent of people 25 years old and older with a bachelor’s degree has increased for all racial and ethnic groups, but Black, Hispanic, Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander, and American Indian/Alaska Native individuals still lag behind Asian and white individuals and those of two or more races.

Trends in Educational Attainment (2010-2022)

Between 2010 and 2022, educational attainment rates among 25- to 29-year-olds increased at each attainment level. During this period, the percentage of 25- to 29-year-olds who had completed at least high school increased from 89 to 95 percent, the percentage with an associate’s or higher degree increased from 41 to 49 percent, the percentage with a bachelor’s or higher degree increased from 32 to 40 percent, and the percentage with a master’s or higher degree increased from 7 to 10 percent.

In 2022, the percentage of 25- to 29-year-olds who had completed at least high school was higher for those who were Asian (99 percent) than for those who were White (97 percent), Black (95 percent), American Indian/Alaska Native (92 percent), and Hispanic (88 percent). In addition, the percentage of 25- to 29-year-olds of Two or more races who had completed at least high school was higher in 2022 (97 percent) than in 2010 (89 percent), although there was no consistent trend between 2010 and 2022. The percentages of those who were Pacific Islander (90 percent) and American Indian/Alaska Native (92 percent) who had completed at least high school in 2022 were not measurably different from the corresponding percentages in 2010.

Between 2010 and 2022, the percentage of 25- to 29-year-olds who had completed at least high school generally remained higher for those who were Asian and White than for those who were Black or Hispanic. The gap in high school completion between Asian and Black 25- to 29-year-olds was 4 percentage points in both 2010 and 2022. However, the White-Black, Asian-Hispanic, and White-Hispanic high school completion gaps all narrowed. The narrowing of the Asian-Hispanic and White-Hispanic gaps was primarily due to the increase in the percentage of those who were Hispanic who had completed at least high school.

Compared to the racial/ethnic gaps in the percentage of 25- to 29-year-olds who completed at least high school in 2022, the gaps in postsecondary degree attainment were generally larger. The percentage of those who attained any postsecondary degree (i.e., associate’s or higher) was at least 22 percentage points higher for those who were Asian (78 percent) than for those of any other racial/ethnic group. In addition, the percentage was at least 20 percentage points higher for those who were White (56 percent) than for those who were Pacific Islander (36 percent), Black (36 percent), Hispanic (34 percent), and American Indian/Alaska Native (19 percent). There was no measurable difference in the percentage of 25- to 29-year-olds who had attained an associate’s or higher degree in 2022 compared to 2010 for those who were American Indian/Alaska Native, Pacific Islander, or of Two or more races. The Asian-Black and Asian-White gaps in the percentage of 25- to 29-year-olds who had attained an associate’s or higher degree each increased by about 8 percentage points throughout this period.

Similar to the pattern for associate’s degrees, the percentage of 25- to 29-year-olds who had attained a bachelor’s or higher degree in 2022 was highest for those who were Asian (72 percent), followed by those who were White (45 percent). In addition, the percentage was higher in 2022 than in 2010 for those who were Pacific Islander (28 vs. 10 percent). The percentages who were American Indian/Alaska Native and of Two or more races who had attained a bachelor’s or higher degree in 2022 were not measurably different from the corresponding percentages in 2010. The White-Hispanic gap in the percentage of 25- to 29-year-olds who had attained a bachelor’s or higher degree narrowed over this period (from 25 to 20 percentage points).

The percentage of 25- to 29-year-olds who had attained a master’s or higher degree in 2022 was higher for those who were Asian (31 percent) than for those who were White (11 percent), Two or more races (9 percent), Black (6 percent), and Hispanic (4 percent). In addition, the percentage was higher for those who were White than for those who were Black or Hispanic. In contrast to the gaps at lower attainment levels, the White-Hispanic gap in the percentage of 25- to 29-year-olds who had attained a master’s or higher degree widened over this period (from 5 to 7 percentage points).

Between 2010 and 2022, educational attainment rates increased for both female and male 25- to 29-year-olds across all educational attainment levels. During this period, attainment rates were generally higher for females than for males. Differences between the educational attainment rates for females and males (also referred to in this indicator as the gender gap) were also observed within racial/ethnic groups in 2022. Gender gaps did not exist for all racial/ethnic groups at all levels of educational attainment in 2022, but where they did, they reflected higher attainment rates for female 25- to 29-year-olds than for their male peers.

Determinants of Racial Disparities in Educational Experiences and Attainment

The Role of Socioeconomic Status

Sizeable achievement gaps exist at the beginning of kindergarten despite relatively similar pre-school enrollment rates. Therefore, these early disparities in achievement must be driven by something other than differences in access to formal schooling prior to elementary school. Research suggests that nearly all of the Black-white reading gap and over 80 percent of the Black-white math gap at the beginning kindergarten can be explained by differences in socioeconomic status and observed family background characteristics.

Black and Hispanic children’s parents typically have lower incomes and lower levels of educational attainment than white children’s parents. Children from low-socioeconomic status households and communities develop academic skills more slowly than children from higher socioeconomic status groups, as reported by the American Psychological Association. The school systems in low-socioeconomic status communities are often under-resourced, which negatively impacts the academic progress and outcomes of the students they serve. Children from low-socioeconomic status families enter high school with average literacy skills five years behind those of high-income students. Individuals within the top family income quartile are 8 times more likely to obtain a bachelor’s degree by age 24 as compared to individuals from the lowest family income quartile.

School and Community Factors

Not all public-school systems and districts are equal, and these differences often fuel different outcomes, opportunities and access to resources. This uneven landscape continues to fuel racial disparities that negatively impact students of color. Black students, for example, are twice as likely as their white peers to be in inadequately funded school districts and 3.5 times more likely to be in “chronically underfunded” districts, according to a 2024 report released by the Albert Shanker Institute.

Students of color fall short of reading and math proficiency benchmarks at greater rates than their white peers, according to 2022 data reported by the KIDS COUNT® Data Center. Among fourth graders nationwide, 84% of Black students, 82% of American Indian students and 80% of Hispanic students did not read at a fourth-grade proficiency level. A smaller share of their Asian/Pacific Islander (45%) and white (59%) classmates scored below. Among eighth graders nationwide: 91% of Black students, 89% of American Indian students and 86% of Hispanic students tested below proficient in math. A smaller share of Asian /Pacific Islander (44%) and white (66%) classmates scored below proficient in math.

Disciplinary Practices

Among public school students issued out-of-school suspensions, Black students were most likely to be suspended (12%) followed by American Indian students (7%). Asian students (1%) as well as white and Hispanic students (both 4%) were far less likely to suffer this same punishment. Suspension can double the risk of someone dropping out of school, which - in turn - triples the risk of justice involvement.

The Impact of COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on the delivery of education to students of all ages. At the start of the pandemic - from April to May 2020 - access to remote learning tools, such as a computer and internet services, were critical. And yet, just 74% of Black households had the necessary virtual learning tools “usually or always available” for children in their household. Even with the right tools at home, the nation’s abrupt shift to remote learning proved challenging. It hindered student and teacher engagement, dramatically decreased instructional time and hindered student understanding. These factors fueled significant learning loss for students nationwide. Between 2019 and 2022, Black and Hispanic students in 20 states across the country experienced a sharper decline in test scores compared to their white peers, according to an Education Recovery Scorecard produced by researchers at Harvard, Stanford and Dartmouth.

Strategies for Addressing Disparities

Same-race elementary school teachers have been shown to boost academic achievement among their students. In one study, Black students were randomly assigned to at least one Black teacher in their first four years of primary school. The Center for American Progress also identifies strategies for realizing a more equitable K‑12 academic landscape, including updating school boundaries and selection criteria to promote racial equity.

The Enduring Controversy: Explanations for Educational Achievement Gaps

The most enduring controversy within sociology about race, ethnicity, and educational achievement is how to explain the differences that we see. There are three main schools of thought about the origin of these differences. Some sociologists argue that cultural differences between racial and ethnic groups can primarily explain the disparities. Others argue that the disparities we see in terms of race are really just class differences that are correlated with race. Finally, the third group thinks that they can be explained by racial discrimination and the United States' history of racial inequality.

Consequences of Educational Disparities: Employment and Income

Differences between racial and ethnic groups in educational achievement matter, most particularly because they affect employment opportunities and future earnings. Unemployment rates for Blacks are higher at all levels of educational attainment: NCES reported that the 2018 unemployment rate for Black college graduates aged twenty-five to thirty-four was 3.6 percent. Meanwhile, 15.8 percent of Black adults of the same age without a high school degree were unemployed. Similarly, AI/AN college graduates in that age group faced a 2.9 percent unemployment rate, while 15.5 percent of similarly aged AI/AN adults without a high school credential were unemployed. These differences occur for White adults (2.0 versus 8.5 percent), Hispanics (2.8 versus 5.3 percent), and Asian adults (2.8 vs. 4.7) as well, though they are not as great. Among all US residents aged twenty-five to thirty-four, the 2019 unemployment rate was 2.4 percent for those who had earned a bachelor's degree and 5.6 percent for those without a high school degree.

Similar patterns are seen with respect to income. According to NCES data, in 2019, the median income for American citizens and residents aged twenty-five to thirty-four with a high school diploma was about $5,700 a year more than for those who had not completed high school ($34,970 versus $29,340). Their peers with a bachelor's degree or higher had a median income more than double ($59,680) what high school leavers earned. While the earnings premiums for additional education are smaller for Black Americans and Hispanics than for APIA and White Americans, they are still significant. Black Americans who attained bachelor's degrees or higher had a median income more than $17,400 higher than those with only high school degrees ($47,310 versus $29,850). While White Americans continue to earn higher incomes than Black Americans and Hispanics, increasing equality in educational attainment would go a long way in reducing income disparities by race and ethnicity.

Affirmative Action: A Contentious Policy

One way that policymakers have responded to the disparities in educational attainment and achievement discussed above is by instituting affirmative action policies. Affirmative action policies are designed to increase the representation of any underrepresented group in an educational or employment setting and have been used in relation to gender inequality as well as racial inequality. These policies are not the same as quotas, but instead make use of various methods for increasing representation, such as outreach, training, and consideration of different groups' unique experiences.

Affirmative action remains controversial. Research suggests that affirmative action programs are successful in reducing some educational disparities but that they also have some unexpected effects. David Colburn and his coauthors found in a 2008 study that affirmative action programs increase the representation of Black and Hispanic students, especially young men, at selective colleges and universities. While their study found that affirmative action had little effect on White access to higher education, they found that the presence of affirmative action limits access for Asian and Pacific Islander Americans.

A 2018 Gallup poll found most Americans favor affirmative action programs generally, but several polls also show dissension on its use in specific applications such as college admissions, hiring, and promotion. For instance, a 2019 Pew Research Center survey found that 73 percent of Americans thought affirmative action should not be considered in college admissions, while 19 percent said it should be a factor and 7 percent wanted it to be a major factor. Specifically, 62 percent of Black respondents argued against it and 38 percent for it, while for White respondents, the split was 78 percent to 22 percent. In May 2023, Forbes reported that 63 percent of American adults opposed the Supreme Court prohibiting colleges from considering race or ethnicity. Public opposition to affirmative action is based in part on some individuals' belief that such policies disadvantage majority groups, and such opposition has led to a marked decline in affirmative action policies. The Supreme Court ruled in 2005 that affirmative action policies are subject to strict limits on implementation and procedure, and through ballot initiatives and court cases, several states have ruled that affirmative action is illegal.

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