Affirmative Action

When the U.S. Supreme Court restricted how colleges can use affirmative action in admissions, it reversed 40 years of precedent and took an ahistorical view that the very laws meant to redress racial injustice prohibit the government from considering race when trying to create equal opportunity. In states where affirmative action has been banned in years past, institutions have spent hundreds of millions of dollars attempting to attract diverse student bodies without considering race—and have fallen short.

In light of the court’s decision, highly selective institutions will need to redouble their efforts to create educational opportunity for students from all walks of life, including through the consideration of adversity and “first generation” and socioeconomic status. That also must include questioning policies that favor privileged applicants, such as standardized testing requirements and preferences for legacies and children of donors.

It is important to keep in mind that the vast majority of college students attend institutions that are not highly selective and have never used affirmative action. Unfortunately, many of the institutions that do the most to advance economic mobility, including minority-serving institutions and community colleges, have also been systemically underfunded. This needs to be redressed to restore the promise of higher education as a pathway to opportunity for all.