Economic divide in America: read our series of blackenterprise.com reports examining key factors that affect African Americans' ability to build wealth. (Special Report).

EDUCATION

Supreme Court ruling on University of Michigan case could impact education for years to come

ON APRIL 1, THE UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT WILL HEAR arguments in one of the most significant cases this year as it relates to race relations and educational opportunities for minority students. The Court has been presented a landmark case that serves as the first test of affirmative action in college admissions since the 1978 Bakke decision.

Attorneys for three rejected white applicants to the University of Michigan are now challenging the historic Bakke decision, which allowed schools to consider race or ethnic background as a factor in determining admission. The briefs, filed late last year with the U.S. Supreme Court, charge that the school's admissions policies are unconstitutional. And to add fuel to the fire, on Jan. 15, President George W. Bush sided with the attorneys, declaring that the school's policies "amount to a quota system that unfairly rewards or penalizes prospective students, based solely on their race."

"The president characterized the University of Michigan's affirmative action program as a `quota,' which it is not," protests NAACP Chairman Julian Bond. (A "quota" system would be illegal in the United States.) "His use of the word quota, with all its overtones of supposed preferences to allegedly unqualified persons, is an attempt to disguise his failure to support justice," Bond says. "It is a poor way to honor [Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s] memory."

In contrast, Alvin Williams, president and CEO of the conservative-leaning Black America's Political Action Committee, says, "I did not walk away feeling Bush is anti-diversity. It is the means by which we reach this critical objective that is the debate." Williams adds that while his organization does recognize past injustices, it feels that the "same objective (equal opportunity and diversity) could be met if the consideration is based more on socioeconomic background, geography, and other factors, not just race."

Bush takes issue with the 150-point system (see chart) the university awards for various qualifications. He calls attention to the fact that students who are African American, Hispanic, or Native American receive 20 points, whereas students with a perfect SAT score receive 12. William Spriggs, executive director of the National Urban League's Institute for Opportunity and Equality and a member of the BLACK ENTERPRISE Board of Economists, believes the president is disingenuous in highlighting these numbers because he doesn't call attention to the number of points assigned to legacy students, or that students from underrepresented counties in Michigan--such as the overwhelmingly white Upper Peninsula--are given 16 points.

The Bush administration filed a "friend of the court" brief with the Supreme Court on Jan. 16. The Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) also filed a "friend of the court" brief in February, detailing its rationale for supporting Michigan's policies. "The University of Michigan is trying to be inclusive to citizens excluded in the past, and citizens who continue to be underrepresented today," says Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), CBC chairman.

The NAACP Legal Defense Fund--representing student intervenors--and several corporations, including 3M Co., Microsoft Corp., Bank One Corp., Steelcase Inc., PepsiCo Inc., and Exelon Corp., are also voicing their support for the university's affirmative action policy to the Court. The corporations appear to be motivated by the desire to recruit talented women and minorities and to promote workplace diversity.

The end goal is to attract a student body that is "diverse in a rich variety of ways," University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman asserts. "We do not have, and have never had, quotas or numerical targets in either the undergraduate or law school admissions programs. Academic qualifications are the overwhelming consideration for admission to both programs."

In somewhat of a contradiction, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, who supports the president's position, released a statement saying that "while race-neutral means are preferable, it is appropriate to use race as one factor among others in achieving a diverse student body." Rice was asked by the president to weigh in on the issue.

Secretary of State Colin Powell, a staunch supporter of affirmative action, dissented from the president's statement on CBS' Face the Nation, saying, "Whereas I have expressed my support for the policies used by the University of Michigan, the president ... came to the conclusion that it was constitutionally flawed based on the legal advice he received."

By participating in the debate, Bush is taking a political risk at a time when his party is struggling to mend political fences. "The president's statement will definitely have a big influence on the Court," says Spriggs. If that's the case, minority students could find themselves excluded from some of the nation's top colleges and universities.

--Joyce Jones & Latif Lewis

University of Michigan Office of Undergraduate Admissions Point Sources

Academic Factors

GPA

   GPA        Points

   2.5          50
   2.6          52
   2.7          54
   2.8          56
   2.9          58
   3.0          60
   3.1          62
   3.2          64
   3.3          66
   3.4          68
   3.5          70
   3.6          72
   3.7          74
   3.8          76
   3.9          78
   4.0          80

SCHOOL FACTOR

Quality     Points

    0          0
    1          2
    2          4
    3          6
    4          8
    5         10

CURRICULUM FACTOR

Difficulty  Points

   -2         -4
   -1         -2
    0          0
    1          2
    2          4
    3          6
    4          8

TEST SCORE *

 ACT            SAT      Points

 1-19           400-920     0
20-21         930-1,000     6
22-26       1,010-1,190    10
27-30       1,200-1,350    11
31-36       1,360-1,600    12

Other Factors

GEOGRAPHY

Residency                         Points

Michigan                            10
Underrepresented MI County           6
Underrepresented State               2

ALUMNI STATUS *

Status                            Points

Legacy (parents/stepparents)         4
Other (grandparents, siblings,       1
spouses)

REQUIRED ESSAY

Essay Quality                     Points

Outstanding Essay                    1
Not Outstanding Essay                0

PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENT *

Level of Achievement              Points

State                                1
Regional                             3
National                             5

LEADERSHIP AND SERVICE *

Level of Achievement              Points

State                                1
Regional                             3
National                             5

MISCELLANEOUS *

Criteria Met                      Points

Socioeconomic Disadvantage          20

Underrepresented Racial/Ethnic      20
Minority Identification
or Education

Men in Nursing                       5

Scholarship Athlete                 20

Provost's Discretion                20

* ASSIGN ONLY ONE OPTION

GENDER GAP

Alexis Herman discusses equal pay for women, offers advice about moving up the corporate lad-

Former U.S. Labor Secretary Alexis Herman sat down with blackenterprise.com editor Latif Lewis to discuss some of the challenges women face in corporate America. Here's what she had to say about the glass ceiling, pay disparities between men and women, and moving up the corporate ladder

BLACK ENTERPRISE: Can you recall any experiences where you felt discriminated against because you are a woman?

ALEXIS HERMAN: I think, obviously growing up in the Deep South, I ran into discrimination quite a bit. It was a part of life. But I think the first incident that really stayed with me was right after I left college, really going on my first job pursuit. I went on job interview after job interview in my hometown of Mobile, [Alabama,] and I was turned down repeatedly. When you talk about the sexism aspect of it--and I often told this story when I was Labor Secretary--there was this one bank executive in Mobile [who said,] "I really would like to hire you. We're starting to give women lobs in this bank. Maybe I can hire you as a teller," he said. "And the other really good job for a woman here is a secretary. If you're lucky, maybe I can bring you in as a secretary." But the only jobs they were hiring women for in the bank were tellers and secretaries.

Well, I did not go to college, first of all, to try to land a job as a secretary. And secondly, I was crushed that he was even saying to me [that] perhaps if I was a white woman he might be able to get me in. But I couldn't even get that because I was a black woman.

B.E.: There was a study conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics that came out [in 2002] called The Labor Force Experience of Women From Generation X. It says that women are still making up a large percentage of traditional so-called women's occupations [i.e., teachers, legal assistants, etc]. Do you think this trend will continue?

HERMAN: I think it's going to change in the future by virtue of the pipeline. I think it's going to be something that the market itself is going to alter because this economy, in order to grow for the future, is going to need the best talent it can find wherever it is. And that talent happens to be, for the future, women minorities because that's where the pipeline is.

B.E.: In many boardrooms in corporate America, the senior managers are usually white males. Why do you think it's so difficult for women to climb the corporate ladder, even if they've actually already secured a position within a company?

HERMAN: I think there are several factors. You have to remember that both formal and informal cultures drive hiring decisions. In the informal networks, because women have not been there, we don't have the role models and the champions who are promoting and fostering other women in greater numbers. Now, luckily, you've got more enlightened males in the corporate sector who recognize that we have to do a better job of getting women into senior-level lobs in corporations.

It goes back to what I was telling you. We're talking about, right now, 50% of all new hires are women. When you put together women and people of color, it's 85% of all new hires. Put together immigrants with people of color and women and it's 85% of the workplace today in terms of who's taking the jobs for the future. It's who's going to school, who we are educating Our destiny is really [based] on demographics.

B.E.: Is there anything that can be done better in the workforce to ensure that women have the same opportunities [as men]?

HERMAN: Well, all of the data says that for women in general--and African American women in particular--having someone who is mentoring and sponsoring you in the organization is the single most critical factor determining long-term success in a company today.

In the past it's been [diversity] programs on paper and not serious engagement. I think companies are now understanding that it really is in their best interest, if they're going to be concerned about retention and getting the best talent, to have more than programs on paper.

B.E.: Now, also, as more women have entered the workforce, it seems that the ratio between what the average woman earns and what the average man earns has narrowed. What can you attribute that to?

HERMAN: I attribute that, again, to more women coming into the workplace today [and] helping to balance out the many women--or the majority of women quite frankly--who are still concentrated in low-wage, limited-opportunity jobs.

So to some extent you have some balancing out of those numbers because of what's happening with the new entrants, and finally you see some women starting to move up into senior management.

B.E.: Do you think women are doing something wrong? Do you think that oftentimes we don't know what we're worth and may be scared to negotiate?

HERMAN: I think it's a phenomenon like other things we as women have experienced. Women are still at a disadvantage because we still don't have enough role models, champions in senior positions, who can pull other women in to be the coaches and the guides who say, "Let me tell you the road I've traveled." And the people ill our immediate circles aren't the people who have that kind of experience.

Hopefully your generation, and to a limited extent my generation, [has that kind of experience]. But ours was a breakthrough generation. So a part of this is who are we talking to? We're not talking to individuals who have had the exposure and experience to be able to pass it on.

B.E.: Is there any advice you can offer African American women, specifically, about succeeding in the workforce and moving up the corporate ladder?

HERMAN: First of all, you have to be very clear about the organizational contribution that you're making and what support you need to get the job done--and ask for that support.

Secondly, I think this notion of haying a mentor or sponsor, someone who can support and coach you within the organization, is critical, particularly in corporate America.

And the third thing that l think is important for blacks is that we be engaged and active. We have to find ways to fill ourselves with courage and spirit so that we don't become discouraged on the job. You've got to have more [than work] going on in your life for balance, so you can refuel, re-energize, and continue to push on.

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Downsized professionals seek new career options

Tracey Brown never knew that a pink slip would turn into her ticket to entrepreneurship. Until December 2001, Brown worked as an executive assistant for EM[C.sup.2] Inc., an Alexandria, Virginia-based data storage company. But after Sept. 11, EM[C.sup.2]'s fortunes evaporated, and her job was eliminated as a result of corporate downsizing.

The 38-year-old single mother had a backup plan, though. Since June 1996, Brown had been running a sideline venture--Maid 4U, a cleaning service based in Prince Georges County, Maryland. After spending several frustrating months chasing jobs, she decided last June to tackle her business full-time. Brown started with a single residential client, generating $4,000 in her first year. Today she grosses an estimated $45,000 in revenues and expects to more than double that figure in the coming year. "What was I going to do?" Brown says. "I couldn't find a job, so I didn't have any other alternative I decided to pursue my cleaning."

Brown is one of thousands of black professionals who have been casualties of corporate cutbacks. According to the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, roughly 8.6 million people were out of work in December 2002. Recent reports show that the overall unemployment rate stands at around 6%, while the unemployment rate for African Americans has risen to 11.5%. And blacks tend to be at a greater disadvantage because they often lack seniority or work disproportionately in noncritical staff positions.

Downsizing has forced support staff as well as managers out of corporations, says Dr. Thomas Boston, a member of the BLACK ENTERPRISE Board of Economists and a professor of economics at the Georgia Institute of Technology. "Entrepreneurship is a natural path for these individuals and a downsizing economy probably accelerates it," says Boston. "Every former manager I know that has been laid off has either started a business or attempted to start one."

Layoffs are not the only reason some black corporate employees are thinking outside the box. Dissatisfaction and growing cynicism among black professionals may also be prompting the exodus from corporate America.

Of course, not everyone has the pluck to become an entrepreneur, and most businesses fail before they get off the starting block. "What I'd say to any employee who was considering [entrepreneurship] as an option is do your research," says Jocelyn Frye, co-chair of the Employment Task Force of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, who urges budding business owners to get a handle on, among other things, the ins and outs of their industry, as well as the capital requirements of their enterprise.

Thus far Brown hasn't hit any major obstacles. In fact, business has accelerated since last July. She now has 28 residential clients. And in November, Maid 4U signed its first commercial contract, handling the cleaning services for a local outlet in the Lowe's home improvement store chain. She recently added one more commercial client and is negotiating contracts with five others. With her strategy in place, the determined entrepreneur fully expects to clean up, estimating revenues of $65,000 to $85,000 this year. With the additional cash flow, Brown has hired one part-time employee and looks forward to hiring several more. Full-fledged business or part-time gig, Brown believes today's employees should definitely create some kind of income alternative. "You should always have a Plan B," she says. "Have a plan and pursue it because you never know what may happen in the corporate world."

--Cliff Hocker

--Additional reporting by Laura Egodigwe

For more on the Economic Divide in America, visit www.blackenteprise.com for reports on minority homeownership, affirmative action and education, the gender gap and the glass ceiling, plus transcripts of CNNfn interviews with our editors.