The State of Higher Education for Black Californians 

(Sacramento, CA)—Today, March 17, 2026, the Campaign for College Opportunity (Campaign) is publishing The State of Higher Education for Black Californians, a report that examines trends in college preparation, access, and success for California’s Black population, as well as the economic impacts and return of a college degree. This publication is the first report in our three-part 2026 series and builds off the Campaign’s State of Higher Education series, last updated in 2021.  

The report finds that California’s progress, though notable, is insufficient in addressing long-documented educational disparities experienced by its Black residents. These disparities limit Black people’s ability to reap the full benefits of a college degree, including better economic, community, civic, and health outcomes that are foundational to a more vibrant state. Moreover, challenges are heightened as students increasingly question the value of higher education, college costs continue to rise, and equitable opportunities are under attack amid a hostile national landscape. Across the state, moderate but consistent gains for Black students are being made across a variety of key metrics, including high school/A-G completion rates, community college transfer rates and transfer-level course completion rates. However, these gains are often in line with statewide trends, leaving pre-existing equity gaps between Black students and their peers untouched.  

The 2026 series features a new and expanded focus on economic mobility, recognizing that the college dream isn’t just about walking across the graduation stage but ensuring that every student has access to a job that allows them to support their families and stay in their community if they choose. The 2026 State of Higher Education for Black Californians report draws upon data from the College Futures Foundation’s Golden Returns and California Mobility indexes to calculate return on investment by looking at graduate wages and how long it takes Black college graduates to recoup the costs of their education.  

Key findings include:

• More Black Californians are earning a bachelor’s degree at 31% of the working-age population, up five percentage points since 2018.   
• All-time highs in graduation rates and A-G course completion at 82% and 45%, respectively.  
• Dramatic improvements in community college transfer-level course completion rates. Since fall 2016, Black students saw a 20 percentage point increase in transfer-level English completion and 35 percentage point increase in transfer-level math completion. 
• Black students remain highly overrepresented at independent, for-profit colleges, which are associated with high costs and low student success rates. 
• Every education system in the state exhibits at least a 10-percentage-point equity gap in the graduation rates between Black and white students.  
• Economic disparities are pronounced post graduation: Black California State University (CSU) and University of California (UC) graduates earnings after 15 years barely exceed those of their white peers after ten.  

To bolster current progress and close remaining disparities, the report highlights several recommendations for federal, state, institutional, and high school leaders, including: 

• Setting statewide benchmarks through the newly established California Education Interagency Council to improve high school graduation rates, A-G completion rates, and college readiness metrics.  
• Expanding access to college preparatory and rigorous coursework, such as AP, IB, and dual enrollment courses, through enhanced academic advising, greater partnerships between local high schools and colleges, and more.  
• Through the California Education Interagency Council, setting and monitoring goals that measure transfer attainment, college attainment, and workforce preparation across the CCC, CSU, and UC to promote coordinated and equitable outcomes for Black students. 
• Increasing transparency in the U.S. Department of Education’s College Scorecard to report data on transfer, return on investment, and campus student support programs by race/ethnicity. 

“The findings in this report leave no room for complacency,” said Jessie Ryan, president of the Campaign for College Opportunity. “The Campaign celebrates California’s meaningful gains in advancing Black student success while holding our state to a higher standard. The equity gaps Black students face as they pursue their college dreams need urgent attention at a moment of widespread jeopardy in higher education. Leaders at every level must continue to protect the strategies that work and implement those that will further Black students’ ability to prepare for, access, succeed in, and thrive after college. In doing so, we can support California’s growth as an economic powerhouse, where every person can enjoy a lifetime of opportunity.” 

The State of Higher Education for Black Californians is commissioned in partnership with A²MEND. 

Reports focused on Latinx and Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Californians are forthcoming this year. The full report is available on the Campaign’s website at: collegecampaign.org/publication/the-state-of-higher-education-for-black-californians-2  

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About Campaign for College Opportunity: 

The Campaign for College Opportunity is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) broad-based, bipartisan coalition, including business, education, and civil rights leaders, that strives to achieve racial and economic justice in California. We promote a more fair and vibrant economy and democracy through an affordable, accountable, and workforce-connected higher education system that ensures more low-income and historically minoritized students complete degrees that allow them to lead economically prosperous lives. For more information, visit  www.CollegeCampaign.org, or follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn.