Bloomfield College Nationally Recognized in Social Mobility by the American Council on Education

Bloomfield College has appeared in another top national recognition list on social mobility. The College has been named in “Minority Serving Institutions as Engines of Upward Mobility,” a new report by the American Council on Education (ACE). ACE, one of the most respected national centers on America’s educational institutions, has Bloomfield College as one of only five predominantly black institutions with a “high extended mobility rate.” That is, from the lowest two quintiles of wealth to the top two quintiles.

“Many Bloomfield College students are coming from the lowest economic quintiles. The College is essentially helping them move to the middle class. This will, in turn, have a profoundly positive effect on families for generations to come. That, I think, is what a higher education is supposed to do,” said Richard A. Levao, College President.

This latest report supports the role minority serving institutions (MSIs) have in strengthening the economic mobility of low-income students. Using new federal data, ACE’s report concludes that students who attend MSIs move up the economic ladder at two to three times the rate of students who attend non-MSIs.

MSIs include historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs); tribal colleges and universities (TCUs); Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs); Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-serving institutions (ANNH); Asian American and Native American-Pacific Islander-serving institutions (AANAPISI); predominantly Black institutions (PBIs); and Native American-Serving, nontribal institutions (NASNTI).

According to the study, to measure upward mobility ACE researchers identified the income information of students at two time periods — the income of the students’ parents at the time of postsecondary enrollment, and then the income of the student at age 30.

ACE President Ted Mitchell said: “As a whole, our nation’s higher education system is making a considerable contribution to improving the lives of Americans on the lowest rung of the economic ladder. The data we present make a strong case for increased investment in institutions, particularly MSIs, that are meeting students where they are, and making good on the value of higher education for individuals, families, and communities.”

In 2017, Bloomfield College and its mission were recognized nationally as well. The College was ranked #1 in New Jersey and #20 nationally in promoting the social and economic mobility of students from the poorest 20 percent in the country to high economic achievement. The study, conducted by experts from Harvard University, Brown University, Stanford University, and UC-Berkeley, as reported in the New York Times, was based on tax data of over 30 million taxpayers.

Placement on these esteemed lists quantify Bloomfield College’s ability to give underserved students the resources and skills needed for future success.