Clemson ranked eighth in graduating African-American engineers

Published: November 23, 2011

CLEMSON — Clemson University ranks eighth among the nation's universities in graduating African-American students in engineering, according to a survey by the magazine Diverse: Issues In Higher Education.

Half of the top-10 institutions in the engineering rankings are historically black colleges and universities. North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro led the list.

Among non-historically black institutions, Clemson ranked between the University of Florida (No. 7) and the University of Michigan (No. 10).

"We have an awesome group of students and alumni, and I'm thrilled to see us in the top 10," said Sue Lasser, director of Programs for Educational Enrichment and Retention, PEER, in Clemson's College of Engineering and Science.

Among other services, the PEER office pairs minority freshmen in the college with minority upperclassmen who serve as mentors and guides in the transition to college life.

Prior to the program's establishment in 1987, Clemson’s graduation rate of African-American engineering majors was near the national average. It now is consistently among the highest among non-historically black colleges and universities, Lasser said.

"The mentors through the years have made this program happen along with college and university support and the involvement of government, industry and foundations," she said. "We've been very fortunate to be a part of  the Louis Stokes-South Carolina Alliance for Minority Participation, as well as receiving generous support from Duke Energy and Fluor Corp."

Diverse: Isssues in Higher Education is a news magazine focusing exclusively on matters of access and opportunity in higher education. Launched in 1984 as Black Issues In Higher Education, the magazine changed its name and its focus in 2005 to better reflect minority demographics in higher education.

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