While black students have more contact with their professors, white students find faculty members more approachable, understanding and encouraging, a nationwide study found.

The study, which was conducted in 1997, surveyed 1,755 students at universities across the country. The students surveyed attended colleges that had minority populations of less than 10 percent.

An unpublished report based on the study, “Exploring Distinctions in Types of Faculty-Student Interactions Among African American, Latino and White College Students,” was released this year.

The report was written by Darnell Cole, assistant professor in the department of education at Marquette University and Guadalupe Anaya, a former education professor at Indiana University at Bloomington.

Psychology senior Lakreese Johnson said she thinks the study was accurate in depicting the relationship between blacks students and their professors. The study found black students were more likely to find faculty members discouraging and unsympathetic.

“You identify with people who look like you,” she said. “I can listen to white professors and learn, but to talk to them, there is going to be a culture clash.”

Johnson said some minority students try to find faculty members that are of the same race in order to feel comfortable.

“I try to seek out minority professors because I am used to that relationship, rather than having to reach outside of my community,” she said. “You can tell by the way professors talk that they focus in on certain people of their same race.”

Nikki O’Brien, coordinator of African American Student Affairs in the Office of Racial Ethnic Student Affairs, said she was not surprised by the study’s results.

“I think classes with over 250 students can be intimidating for anybody,” she said. “But, if you are African American, and there are only one or two of you in the class, you may stick out. Usually, that doesn’t necessarily mean your voice and opinions will be heard or validated by professors or classmates.”

But microbiology Professor Julius Jackson, said in some cases, students often create relationships with faculty outside of class - regardless of their race.

“No matter what they look like, they need more faculty contact and can benefit,” he said. “But many are hesitant to approach faculty. They don’t feel especially comfortable.”

Jackson said it may be difficult for black students, or anyone with a history of exclusion, to feel welcome. He said the bottom line is a level of comfort that must be reached by the student and professor.

“What you can generally say is that anyone will feel most comfortable when they feel welcomed in the environment where they are,” he said.

Cole, one of the study authors, said he knew students of color experienced a different interaction with faculty members, and the study helped him discover why.

“We were able to pinpoint the extent to which the faculty interaction is different,” he said. “It differs in the terms and the types of interactions. The interactions with faculty is more significant and involved for white students.”

But he said race is not the only contributing factor.

“It’s not just the race of the person,” he said. “You can find a black or white person who has a sensitivity to race. Typically, those who are nonwhite will be sensitive, but that isn’t always the case.”

Cole said faculty and students can help foster better relationships by being aware of the kinds of interaction available to them.

“Students of color have to be talked to and given information on how the relationship can become more significant,” he said. “If you have faculty you can trust and talk to, the chance of you being more successful in college increases.”