What changing policies mean for higher education and how are you watching the World Cup?

From Marketplace in Washington, I'm Kimberly Adams. This Juneteenth, we're checking in on the state of higher education among black Americans.

Earlier this year, the Pew Research Center released an analysis of government data and found that in 2024, the percentage of black adults in the U.S. over the age of 25 who'd earned a bachelor's degree or a higher credential hit nearly 28%.

That's almost double what it was in the year 2000. Marketplace's Stephanie Hughes takes a look at the history

behind those numbers and what's ahead. For decades after emancipation, there was an active

movement to keep black people uneducated. Dominic Baker is at the University of Delaware.

Historically, we purposely created policies to stop black people from going to college.

And in more recent decades, we had taken the steps to actually lessen the impact of those

historical policies. Baker says that includes the passage of the Civil Rights Act, which

provided protections against discrimination. And it takes a while for that to show up.

And so that is why we start seeing much higher attainment in recent decades. But in the past few years,

there have been changes in education policy. In 2023, the Supreme Court ruled that colleges can no

longer legally consider race and admissions.

Now, schools, including Johns Hopkins and MIT, have fewer black students enrolling.

Both Texas and Florida have banned DEI programs at public colleges.

And Jordan Ellums with the Century Foundation says schools elsewhere have rolled them back,

which leave students with less mentorship and support.

They may end up thinking that colleges inform them.

Nellam says these programs are designed to help students succeed, and he calls their elimination

a potential disaster for black educational attainment.

I'm Stephanie Hughes for Marketplace.

U.S. markets are closed today for June 10th, but oil markets remain open.

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