Where are the African-Americans in STEM at TSU?


tsugraytiger

tsugraytiger

Well-Known Member
I've noticed an uncomfortable trend at TSU and I'm sure it's the case at many other schools too.

The overwhelming majority of the black students in the most high-paying and challenging STEM majors at TSU which are Pharmacy, Engineering, and Computer Science are Nigerian immigrants or Nigerian-Americans. Rarely will you see your traditional African-American student from Bellaire, Lamar, Yates, Desoto, Thurgood Marshall, Alief etc in these programs. Back in my day (I'm getting old), African-Americans students were way more common. But as many of us Texans know, smart Nigerians have began to "take over" Texas universities, especially in Houston .. they are really making their presence known.

Is it me or is it a low-key problem we need to somehow fix? Many Africans I know are detached from African-American culture and usually have no interest to reinvest in black american communities which scares me most. They primarily socialize and operate in Nigerian groups. And of course some do act superior to African-Americans. They a different type of black in more cases than not LOL
 
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Sadly alot of Black kids are intimidated by math and science so they lose the battle psychologically before it even starts. Also, as a nation we dont have anything going on that would inspire kids to study science. When I was a kid growing up close to NASA, me and all of my friends wanted to be astronauts (until the challenger explosion lol). We gave up those dreams but still had that foundation.

Even at PV now, I couldn't help but notice how many middle eastern and Nigerians graduated in this last college of engineering class vs Black students.

With college becoming more expensive.we have to get away from the mindset of "just go and get a degree". Too many kids are digging themselves in holes getting useless degrees.
 



I can easily write a dissertation on the dwindling # of american youth of color not following the STEM path. Most are afraid of challenge and lack the required drive to overcome any (educational or physical) obstacle. The inherent challenge of self-competitivity, overcoming the learning aspect, and necessary drive to seek and conquer are seriously missing in today's youth. Our forefathers were told that they were not equals, so they sought to change the perception by walking through front doors and demanding to be treated as equals. My generation was told that we couldn't be as intelligent as whites, so we sought to change that perception w/ action, dedication, and greater intellect. These currents, for the most part, lack interest in conquering.
 
It is the same reason why our "A&M" universities are full of teachers and criminal justice majors. Too many of our kids are running away from science and math in high school especially black girls. Thankfully, organizations like Black Girls Code are trying to change that. When I hear high school students say they are going to major in psychology, I cringed. I am amazed at the number of female IT recruiters I come across who majored in psychology or criminal justice in college. And this is no knock against those fields, but there are a whole lot of people who spent years and money on those fields before they realized either they couldn't get a job or it wasn't something they really wanted to do.
 
Storm96 said:
Sadly alot of Black kids are intimidated by math and science so they lose the battle psychologically before it even starts. Also, as a nation we dont have anything going on that would inspire kids to study science. When I was a kid growing up close to NASA, me and all of my friends wanted to be astronauts (until the challenger explosion lol). We gave up those dreams but still had that foundation.

Even at PV now, I couldn't help but notice how many middle eastern and Nigerians graduated in this last college of engineering class vs Black students.

With college becoming more expensive.we have to get away from the mindset of "just go and get a degree". Too many kids are digging themselves in holes getting useless degrees.
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And the disparity will likely become more apparent with the influx of Hispanic students enrolling at Texas HBCUs in the upcoming years. We have two or three Hispanic cheerleaders this year, something I never seen at TSU. The face of STEM at TSU and PV will no longer be primarily African-American, it's something we're gonna have to accept. But TSU and PV still accepts the least competitive and academically ambitious students for the most part, and I know some of it is due to unfair life circumstances , racial bias etc but I'm gonna say the overwhelming majority of it is due to them being lazy and just wanting to "party".

But let's be clear, the black students at Xavier University of Louisiana, Spelman, Morehouse, FAMU, North Carolina A&T, and Howard are killing in STEM and have large STEM populations. I think the issue we're having is unique to Texas
 
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