Study Will Assess Barriers to Minoritized Student Success in Gateway Courses

A new national study involving over 1,500 educators will explore how evidence-based teaching practices, digital learning, and faculty mentality impact Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and Pell-eligible students enrolled in gateway courses.

Ten institutions have been chosen to participate in the study, run by the Association of College and University Educators (ACUE) and sponsored with a $1.5 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

"To date, our 18 studies have established an incontrovertible link between the evidence-based teaching of ACUE-credentialed faculty and improved grades, higher completion rates, and closed equity gaps by race, ethnicity, and socio-economic status,” said ACUE chief data officer Meghan Snow. “With this new study, we can investigate these relationships in gateway courses—which are so consequential in a student’s academic career.”

The ten institutions are:

 The study’s preliminary findings are expected to be released in early 2023.