[mlassoff]

Originally Posted by LRPct

Its economic, not racial.

Agreed.

It still belies the questions, however, why so many minorities are so economically challenged here. While it is economic segregation, there is the widest of gaps in Connecticut between non-minority and minority economic achievement.

While there's no conspiracy afoot, it is something worthy of study.

[Wilton2ParkAve]

Originally Posted by the fish

right so you voted for Malloy yet think racial diversity is typical liberal drivel. ok understood

You appear to be far from understanding.

[Stylo]

Originally Posted by mlassoff

Agreed.

It still belies the questions, however, why so many minorities are so economically challenged here. While it is economic segregation, there is the widest of gaps in Connecticut between non-minority and minority economic achievement.

While there's no conspiracy afoot, it is something worthy of study.

It is not easy to reverse poorer cultures. Poor begets poor, unfortunately.

Also, not to get overly politicized - but the social safety net is both a blessing and curse to the poor.

[AntonioR]

Originally Posted by mlassoff

Agreed.

It still belies the questions, however, why so many minorities are so economically challenged here. While it is economic segregation, there is the widest of gaps in Connecticut between non-minority and minority economic achievement.

While there's no conspiracy afoot, it is something worthy of study.

SAT Critical Reading Score = state average (509) vs white (529) vs black (419)
SAT Math Score = state average (513) vs white (533) vs black (407)

Only 20% of blacks scored 1000 or higher on the SAT vs 66% of whites or 30% of Hispanics.

Of the total state SAT takers population, students that scored 1000 or higher tended to be white (80%) while blacks made up only 3% and Hispanics made up an additional 5%.

The more interesting findings is the performance of Asian students. Despite the fact that Asians were only 4% of all CT SAT takers (compared to whites 70%, blacks 9%, and Hispanics 8%), 66% of Asians scored 1000 or higher and they made up 5% of the total state SAT takers population that scored 1000 or higher.

My conclusion is that its very hard for minorities to be represented among the professional population as they are in the population at large (blacks are 11% of CT's population) when they relatively do considerably worse in academics.

This obviously ignores intrastate migration patterns, because all of CT's college bound students don't go to CT universities and not all of CT-made professionals practice their profession in this state. Also, not to mention that there are plenty of out-of-state professionals in this state whether they moved here from somewhere else or they live on the other side of one of our borders. But overall, there is a very clear pattern in academics that shouldn't be overlooked when asking why things are the way they are.

See page 2: https://www.ccsu.edu/uploaded/depart...h/20090320.pdf

With all of this, I think its more of an economic and a cultural issue.

[mlassoff]

Originally Posted by AntonioR

SAT Critical Reading Score = state average (509) vs white (529) vs black (419)
SAT Math Score = state average (513) vs white (533) vs black (407)

Only 20% of blacks scored 1000 or higher on the SAT vs 66% of whites or 30% of Hispanics.

Of the total state SAT takers population, students that scored 1000 or higher tended to be white (80%) while blacks made up only 3% and Hispanics made up an additional 5%.

The more interesting findings is the performance of Asian students. Despite the fact that Asians were only 4% of all CT SAT takers (compared to whites 70%, blacks 9%, and Hispanics 8%), 66% of Asians scored 1000 or higher and they made up 5% of the total state SAT takers population that scored 1000 or higher.

My conclusion is that its very hard for minorities to be represented among the professional population as they are in the population at large (blacks are 11% of CT's population) when they relatively do considerably worse in academics.

This obviously ignores intrastate migration patterns, because all of CT's college bound students don't go to CT universities and not all of CT-made professionals practice their profession in this state. Also, not to mention that there are plenty of out-of-state professionals in this state whether they moved here from somewhere else or they live on the other side of one of our borders. But overall, there is a very clear pattern in academics that shouldn't be overlooked when asking why things are the way they are.

See page 2: https://www.ccsu.edu/uploaded/depart...h/20090320.pdf

With all of this, I think its more of an economic and a cultural issue.

Which is all evidence to the point--- Why do on average minorities do worse on the SAT. They aren't genetically inferior. When you adjust for economic background, blacks do about the same as non-blacks on the SAT.

We're getting in to some big questions here about the nature of poverty, and the causes for it. What are the differences between people who get out of poverty and those who don't?

[EricS39]

Originally Posted by mlassoff

Which is all evidence to the point--- Why do on average minorities do worse on the SAT. They aren't genetically inferior. When you adjust for economic background, blacks do about the same as non-blacks on the SAT.

We're getting in to some big questions here about the nature of poverty, and the causes for it. What are the differences between people who get out of poverty and those who don't?

It is both access to facilities and housing conditions, not having access to basic resources without an exhaustive living situation

If you had no personal computer or smart phone or had no AC and no comfortable room, and you room with loud families growing up throwing things at your window at 3AM, have no parental support to study, how likely are you to grow academically in comparison to someone who does have these support mechanisms? The driver of the lack of equal facility access is poverty and this poverty perpetuates a next generation of poverty. You can blame bad parenting on things as well but some of these so called bad parents if they weren't improverished, could invest way more in their children for after school activities, summer programs, tutoring, etc. It's not true to conclude this is a class culture issue.

One amazing experience I had was in DC area during the snowstorm. It may have been one of the few times I've ever seen where nobody had power and the city grid faired equal to the suburban power grid. All the money in the world wouldn't save you for that 24 hours you were stuck ....roads were closed completely...metro and bus halted...nothing to do but wait and freeze....the poor minorities handled this better than the affluent people
...was an amazing site

[Stylo]

Wealthy whites also score far better than poorer whites on SAT's. It's largely economics.

[Wilton2ParkAve]

Originally Posted by EricS39

It is both access to facilities and housing conditions, not having access to basic resources without an exhaustive living situation

If you had no personal computer or smart phone or had no AC and no comfortable room, and you room with loud families growing up throwing things at your window at 3AM, have no parental support to study, how likely are you to grow academically in comparison to someone who does have these support mechanisms? The driver of the lack of equal facility access is poverty and this poverty perpetuates a next generation of poverty. You can blame bad parenting on things as well but some of these so called bad parents if they weren't improverished, could invest way more in their children for after school activities, summer programs, tutoring, etc. It's not true to conclude this is a class culture issue.

One amazing experience I had was in DC area during the snowstorm. It may have been one of the few times I've ever seen where nobody had power and the city grid faired equal to the suburban power grid. All the money in the world wouldn't save you for that 24 hours you were stuck ....roads were closed completely...metro and bus halted...nothing to do but wait and freeze....the poor minorities handled this better than the affluent people
...was an amazing site

There is an interesting nugget in your text--- why do you assume that poor automatically translates to no parental support? All it takes to break the cycle is placing education in higher esteem.

My father is a high school dropout, but my sister and I both hold advanced/multiple college degrees. Oddly enough we both broke the cycle.

[AntonioR]

Originally Posted by mlassoff

When you adjust for economic background, blacks do about the same as non-blacks on the SAT.

Care to share the study you are using to support this claim?

All I can find is similar to this:

"But there is a major flaw in the thesis that income differences explain the racial gap. Consider these three observable facts from The College Board's 2005 data on the SAT:

• Whites from families with incomes of less than $10,000 had a mean SAT score of 993. This is 129 points higher than the national mean for all blacks.

• Whites from families with incomes below $10,000 had a mean SAT test score that was 61 points higher than blacks whose families had incomes of between $80,000 and $100,000.

• Blacks from families with incomes of more than $100,000 had a mean SAT score that was 85 points below the mean score for whites from all income levels, 139 points below the mean score of whites from families at the same income level, and 10 points below the average score of white students from families whose income was less than $10,000."
(The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education: The Widening Racial Scoring Gap on the SAT College Admissions Test)

"It is also true that the gap shrinks only a little when black and white families have the same amount of schooling, the same income, and the same wealth."
(The Black-White Test Score Gap)

The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education: Why Family Income Differences Don't Explain the Racial Gap in SAT Scores

[Lalalally]

Originally Posted by mlassoff

We're getting in to some big questions here about the nature of poverty, and the causes for it. What are the differences between people who get out of poverty and those who don't?

Strong work ethic? Solid moral upbringing? Healthy dose of fear that if you fall, there won't be anyone there to catch you? Skills? I really don't know ... but some deep questions for sure. I never thought much about it when I was younger, but I'm absolutely amazed by my mom's family. They lived for five years as refugees in Europe following the end of WWII. In 1950 they were finally allowed to emigrate to the U.S. Seven of them and their two suitcases hopped on a boat and landed themselves in NYC not speaking a word of English (it's pretty cool actually - I was able to find their names (and their 2 suitcases -- the ships manifest really did log that!) on ancestry.com). They had nothing at all, except some skills that they put to work ASAP (except my mom of course - she was little more than a baby at the time, but her parents and older siblings all worked very hard) They hustled for sure, and by the time the first generation Americans came along (me included), we were all leading a comfortable NYC middle-class lifestyle. And all of the kids in that first American generation graduated from college : )