Book Reviews: Diversity and Gender in Tech Comm

Reviews for this topic will be published in April 2025.

Diversity’s Promise for Higher Education: Making It Work, 4^th ed.

Daryl G. Smith. John Hopkins University Press. 2024. 408 pages.

Index Terms—DEI, higher education, institutional effectiveness.

Reviewed by Nicole St. Germaine, Professor, Natalie Z. Ryan Department of English, Angelo State University

Few topics have generated more controversy in higher education than the topic of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). While many states and college campuses embrace DEI and make it the centerpiece of their recruitment efforts, other states, such as Texas, are pulling back and even closing their DEI offices. Daryl G. Smith’s Diversity’s Promise for Higher Education: Making It Work seeks to persuade academics and university administration that diversity isn’t just desirable on college campuses; it is essential to the survival of the academy and to society.

Smith makes the case throughout the book that DEI is not a liberal political agenda: it is about “effective institutions, academic excellence, good science, and higher education’s role in preparing leaders of all backgrounds for their work in a diverse society” (p. 3). To this end, the book is divided into four parts: Part 1 explains the “diversity imperative;” Part 2 is focused on explaining why diversity, like technology, is an integral part of our society; Part 3 focuses on how diversity works to maximize talent and resources; and Part 4 explains what the academy must do to fulfill our role in preparing students for their eventual roles in our pluralistic democracy.

Data analysis is the greatest strength of Diversity’s Promise for Higher Education. Smith doesn’t use case studies and individual vignettes to make his case, instead, he drives the discussion by data drawn from sources such as college admissions, federal financial aid information, and labor statistics. Smith disaggregates this data and explains its implications to make a compelling case for DEI initiatives.

The one criticism that I have is that Smith focuses almost exclusively on diversity in race, ethnicity, and gender. Smith can be excused to some extent for neglecting to provide a thorough discourse on the politics of gender identity in higher education, which more recently came to the academy’s attention. However, I wonder why the topics of disability, sexual orientation, and religious diversity were not addressed in more detail. I can only hope that later editions will provide the same rich data and discussion about these topics within DEI.

Diversity’s Promise for Higher Education should be essential reading not only for college administrators, but also for professors, advisors, and anyone in a decision-making capacity in higher education. As Smith points out frequently within the text, the real DEI work doesn’t just happen in the University President’s office: it happens in the classroom, in the admissions office, and anywhere decisions about students are made.