Even Black tech workers face challenges in AI-driven future

The number of Black students enrolling in technology-oriented higher education programs has been decreasing, leaving challenges when it comes to bringing them into STEM-related fields.

- By KAREN JUANITA CARRILLO Amsterdam News Staff

Figures from the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) also indicate a decline in the number of Black graduates in engineering and mathematics, and that has advocates concerned.

“One way to analyze the racial and ethnic representation in the STEM workforce is by comparing the distributions to those in the total U.S. workforce,” the NCSES noted in a May 2024 report. “Using this comparison, in 2021, STEM workers were disproportionately Asian and White ... In 2021, Black or African American workers comprised 8% of workers in STEM occupations, which was lower than their percentage of the total workforce (11%).

The percentage of STEM workers that were Hispanic was 15%, compared with 18% of all workers.”

Black communities, with limited exposure to STEM careers and restricted access to essential K-12 computer science courses, remain underrepresented in STEM fields. This situation could affect employment opportunities for Black workers in an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven future.