Please Note: This editorial does not reflect the views of each individual member of “The Parker Weekly” Editorial Board.
On Thursday, June 29, the Supreme Court ruled against the use of affirmative action in college admissions, making it illegal for colleges to directly consider race and other identifiers when reviewing applications. The ramifications of this decision will play out in the upcoming year of college admissions, and all high school seniors are likely to be affected in some way. We are writing this editorial to share a few of our thoughts and understandings of the affirmative action situation and encourage more thoughtful discussion as we begin our year.
Diversity at well-resourced colleges is important. Colleges are supposed to be places of learning and growth, but without a diversity of thought provided by having people of different identities and backgrounds, there is very little to learn from one another or to be open-minded about.
Having diversity in higher education is important for minorities. These educations can also be transformative for many, and prestigious institutions must not be gate-kept by people already in positions of socioeconomic power. How can minorities feel safe and comfortable at an institution where there aren’t other minorities around them? Without the ability to relate to people with similar backgrounds and life experiences, minority students may find themselves feeling isolated, which would take away from their learning experience as a whole.
Many colleges are springing into action after the Supreme Court decision by finding other ways to promote diversity in college admissions, editing their supplemental questions, and some ending legacy admissions. In an article for Politico, Bianca Quilantan speculated that some colleges may even use zip codes, high schools, household incomes, and recruiting programs to bolster diversity in their student bodies.
The outlook is still bleak regarding whether these efforts will bring in the successful diversity to colleges as affirmative action has. According to NPR, decades after affirmative action was banned in California’s public universities, the schools are failing to achieve their diversity and equity goals. According to a study by Zachary Bleemer of UC Berkeley, enrollment among Black and Latino students at UCLA and UC Berkeley fell by 40% when the ban on affirmative action took effect with the incoming class of ‘98. Additionally, an amicus brief that the University of California system sent to the Supreme Court in support of Harvard and UNC’s race conscious admissions processes said the minority students who are enrolled report they are experiencing “feelings of racial isolation.” These outcomes are especially disheartening given the over 500 million dollars the system spent on “outreach and alternative admissions standards,” as reported by NPR.
Though the effects of this change are uncertain, we can expect some frustrating outcomes. As we begin this school year, we wanted to articulate our understanding of the issue as Parker students and hope that the Parker community can discuss and make sense of this together.
We hope Parker will take some opportunities to talk about affirmative action directly. This might include an MX, surely some discussion from the college counselors with the upperclassmen, and other chances to explore the issue.
Though Parker is, in many ways, a collaborative and supportive learning environment, if there’s one thing that brings out competitiveness in our students, it is surely college admissions. News of acceptances and rejections spread quickly, and discomfort is nearly unanimous within each senior class approaching the process. Now there is a new dimension to these decisions and it is sure to add to this discomfort. We hope that students and families will be sensitive to the great political factors of college decisions this year and will keep conversation of the admissions process strictly supportive and empathetic.
