A recent study conducted by Education Trust (2016) found that over the past decade, graduation rates for African American students improved by 4.4 percent compared to 5.6 percent for white students. However, because completion rates of African American students progressed at a slower and lower rate the graduation gap has grown. Of the 232 institutions studied 68.5 percent of the institutions had an African American student graduation rate increase, while 31.5 percent of institution’s African American student graduation rates decreased or stayed the same. However, while graduation rates increased for 52.8 percent of institution’s studied, gaps between African American students and white students stayed the same or increased; while 47.2 percent of institution’s gaps between African American students decreased. Retention and graduation gaps between African American students and white students suggests that African American students are not gaining the knowledge, skills, and competencies to be successful in the twenty-first century. Projected increases in postsecondary enrollment, specifically for African Americans and Hispanics, combined with huge gaps in retention and graduation, has increased the need for institutions to understand …show more content…
AAMT provides a framework which allows one to describe and analyze the interrelated structures, systems, and process that occurs which affects and shapes the development, experiences, outcomes, and trajectory of African American boys and men (Bush & Bush, 2013). Urie Bronfenbrenner developed the ecological development theory and stated that framework was based on 5 systems. The environment is conceived topologically as a nested arrangement of structures which are each contained within the next (Bronfenbrenner,