The official newspaper of Leeds University
www.thegryphon.co.uk Twitter: @TheGryphonLeeds Instagram: @thegryphon Issue 2 18/10/19
You Better get EUsed to Brexit Inaya Folarin, ex-Features Editor at the Gryphon is now running for the Brexit Party in Leeds North East. Features ask her about her plans if she becomes MP. Page 8-9
Society Sits Down with ACS Illustration by Lauren Burnett
Black Students Awarded 1st Class Degrees Four Times Less in 2018
An interview with society President, Kingsley Duru about their rebranding, success this year and their upcoming event Legacy. Page 11
Statistics published by both The Gryphon and the University reveal large disparities between White and Black students in particular at the University of Leeds Megan Ardis, Ed Barnes Associate Editor, Editor-In-Chief Black Students were awarded Class 1 degrees at the University of Leeds at a rate that is four times less than White students in the academic year 20182019. In the last academic year, only 7.9% of Black students got a Class 1 degree compared to 33.3% of White students. This was an awarding gap of 25.4%. Since 2015, the statistics also revealed that the gap has widened by 8%. In 2015-16, 25.5% of White students got a Class 1 degree compared to 8.1% for Black students. When looking at other racial groups too, White students were awarded better grades than Asian students and those classed at “Other” that included mixed-race students. For Third Class honours and Fails too, gaps between White and Black students were also present. In 2015, 18.8% of Black students were awarded Fails or Third class degrees compared to 6.4% of White students. This represents a gap of 12.4%. In 2018, this gap has closed to 10.1% between students awarded this grade
level. However Black students were awarded Third Class degrees or Fails 2.6 times more than White students. A University of Leeds spokesperson said: “We have committed to very clear targets to close the gaps in student success in our Access and Participation Plan. The gap between Black and White students’ success in particular is worrying, and as a University that absolutely values diversity and equal opportunity, we are determined to reverse this trend. “Our strategy is concentrating on the critical factors that we think will really make a difference – with staff at all levels focused on tackling the issue, data analysis and research to understand gaps, barriers and impact of work, more opportunities to talk about race, cultures and actions, as well as our on-going work to ensure the curriculum is inclusive to students from all backgrounds and improve diversity of staff.” In every academic year since 2015, Black students were awarded the lowest grades out of any other racial group in the University statistics while White students were awarded the highest.
Overall, there was a 28.9% gap between Black and White students at the University of Leeds who were awarded a 2:1 degree classification or above in 2017/18, according to statistics detailed in the University of Leeds’ 2019-2020 Access and Participation Plan. Abiha Khan, the Education Officer at Leeds University Union, in a statement said: “The BAME awarding gap is a national issue, and a key manifesto point for me personally this year. Among the actions I am taking, I am submitting policy to Better University Forum in November around whether the University should adopt and implement a strategy to close the BAME awarding gap.” “At LUU we are working on our first full report into the Leeds awarding gap and identifying the steps we can take to support our BAME members and highlight this issue at faculty and institution level, as well as disaggregating data to ensure we support those students who are disproportionately affected by these barriers.”
Story Continued on Page 6.
Extincts? Has XR Passed Its Sell-By Date? Views looks at the morality of protests in relation to Extinction Rebellion and their recent legal set-backs in London. Page 14
Black History Makers Sport looks at the legacies of fifteen Black athletes who have broken records and made history in different sports Page 23