His research incorporates social theoretical frameworks and empirical analyses of higher education issues, developments, and institutions. His recent projects have examined African-American issues in higher education, the role of race in American academic and intellectual hierarchies, relationships between urban universities and communities, and organizational analyses of racial diversity and the public service mission of higher education. He has also written on the relevance of W. E. B. Du Bois for African Americans in higher education and the importance of role models and mentors for Black college students.