The US Supreme Court decision outlawing racial preferences in college admissions has settled that argument, at least on paper (Harvard University Signals It Has No Intention of Obeying the Supreme Court’s Anti-Racism Decision). It has also spun off several similar battles over the college admissions process.
Progressives are going after legacy admissions. The ostensible reason is that it isn’t fair and equitable that the offspring of graduates at elite universities are put to the head of the line. Personally, I find this attack perplexing. It is the left who are obsessed with credentialing. Besides that, elite universities are the wellspring of anti-Americanism. So you aren’t going to find a lot of folks on my side of the great gulf fixed between left and right giving aid or comfort to either side in that particular war. In my opinion, the real reason is that progressives know that most legacy admissions are White kids, and this is just racist payback. Data show that legacy admissions would probably have been accepted into elite universities in any case (see Outlawing Legacy Admissions to Elite Universities Will Not Make Progressives Happy), so the most this will accomplish is cluing in the elites that the progressive slogans they mouth will not keep the real progressives from coming after them and their families.
The second battle shaping up is over scholarships awarded by universities according to race and gender.
Universities in at least two states say they will no longer take race into account in awarding scholarships in the wake of the Supreme Court’s landmark finding on affirmative action.
Though the decision finding race-based admissions policies unconstitutional last week didn’t address scholarships, the University of Kentucky and the University of Missouri System have already said they would remove race as a criteria in scholarship programs. Other colleges are expected to follow suit, as many face political pressure to make changes following the court’s ruling.
“We are still reviewing the details of the ruling, but, based on our initial understanding, it appears that the court has restricted the consideration of race with respect to admissions and scholarships,” University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto said the day the ruling was released.
An article, in Essence, headlined, Republicans Now Targeting Scholarships For Black Students After Supreme Court’s Affirmative Action Decision, makes it clear who is to blame.
“It took Republicans no time at all to take the Supreme Court’s affirmative action decision and use it to attack other educational initiatives intended to support people of color.” In their latest move, the GOP is taking the affirmative action battle beyond the admissions process to now trying to eliminate college scholarships for minorities.
There is pushback
Paulette Granberry Russell, president and chief executive of the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education, said the Supreme Court opinion only addressed the use of race in admissions and it was premature to extend its reach to scholarships.
“We have been concerned about the chilling effect that the decision might have on efforts to diversify campuses, as well as to cultivate inclusive environments, and we now see how this is already playing out,” she said.
While she (??) is literally correct about the Supreme Court ruling, she is profoundly stupid if she thinks there is a majority on the court who will say, “yeah, colleges admitting students based on race is unconstitutional but giving scholarships based on race sounds like a great idea.”
The professional cabal of financial aid administrators has also urged caution.
“The SCOTUS opinion was squarely focused on institutions’ admissions policies,” Justin Draeger, president and CEO of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, told Inside Higher Ed. “The highest court in the country took months to deliberate on this issue, and schools should similarly consider any implications on financial aid … (and) be careful about overreacting.”
One workaround is the scholarship equivalent of legacy admissions where donors contribute to privately funded scholarships based on race.
For instance, Charles Barkley says he will endow scholarships for black students at his alma mater.
Charles Barkley, the TV commentator and former NBA player, said he would be updating his will to leave Auburn University in Alabama $5 million for scholarships for Black students. “That’s just my way of trying to make sure Auburn stays diverse,” he said of his alma mater. More than 3 in 4 students or 78% at the land-grant institution are white.
I think the US Constitution expressly forbids federal and state entities from awarding any benefit based on race. I can’t imagine Auburn administering race-based scholarships is any more constitutional than race-based admissions. If Barkley wants to endow a non-profit to award scholarships, I don’t have a problem with that. As someone famous once said, “Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money?” What I do have a huge issue with is racism masquerading as public policy.
If private entities wish to create and award race-based scholarships, including scholarships for White kids, I am 100% in support of that. I don’t think it is wise, prudent, or even useful, but private citizens have a right, and one might say a duty, to spend their money to shape the nation’s direction. The moment a state entity gets involved in the process, I think we have crossed a line that we shouldn’t want to cross.
