Students of different ethnic groups at UNA have varying retention and graduation rates, according to the most recent data from UNA’s Department of Research.

The data, which was collected from 2009 to 2010 in what is known as the Oklahoma Study, shows large gaps in graduation rates between African-American and Caucasian groups of students.

The percentage of Caucasian students that graduated in the last few years is much higher than the percentage of African-American students that graduated, though the overall retention rates are improving.

“You‘re never going to get it at 100 percent,” said Dr. Andrew Luna, director of UNA’s Department of Research, about the report and how UNA can improve retention and graduation rates. “You look at trends, you talk to students, you just see what the university can do based on what you find out.”

In the Oklahoma Study, students were grouped into cohorts of first-term freshmen according to their entrance year, and the rates of retention and graduation were measured based on what the students of that class did, excluding any transfer student activity.

Of the 645 Caucasian and 128 African-American first-year freshmen admitted in 2008, 84.2 percent of the Caucasian students and 68.8 percent of the African-American students were retained.

These numbers are a significant improvement over the numbers from the 2007 group, where only 66.2 percent of Caucasian students and 60.9 percent of African-American students were retained.

Another trend that has emerged over the last few years is a drop in four-year graduates among all ethnic groups, with fifth and sixth-year graduations becoming more popular, though the percentage of graduates in all fields has dropped.

Of Caucasian students from the 2005 cohort, only 57.4 percent either dropped or transferred out of UNA by their fourth year of college, compared to the 72.9 percent of African-American students that left by the fourth year of college. Only 13.4 percent of the remaining Caucasian students graduated that fourth year while the other 29.2 percent continued on for another year.

The African-American 2005 cohort had only 4.2 percent of students graduating by the fourth year and 22.9 percent continued on for their fifth year.

When it comes to students staying in school and graduating, Luna said, one of the most important deciders is if students can find a direction or goal to work towards.

“The earlier a student can commit to a major, the more likely they are to stay in school,” Luna said.

According to May Takeuchi, assistant professor of sociology at UNA, an education gap like this one can come about due to many factors, though the most important factor is income.

Takeuchi said the education gap between different ethnic groups has been decreasing and will continue to do so, as all members get a better appreciation for education.