Posted on 07/25/2023 2:43:37 PM PDT by Syncopated
The US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has officially opened an investigation into Harvard University’s use of donor and legacy preferences in its admissions process, following a federal civil rights complaint filed earlier this month just days after the Supreme Court struck down race-based affirmative action in higher education.
A spokesperson for the US Department of Education confirmed the open investigation into Harvard’s admissions practices Tuesday.
The investigation will focus on whether Harvard “discriminates on the basis of race by using donor and legacy preferences in its undergraduate admissions process,” according to a letter from the Department of Education to the attorney for the group that filed the complaint. The investigation will focus on whether such policies violate Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits organizations that receive federal funding from discriminating on the basis of race. The department declined to comment further on the open investigation.
On Monday, Harvard spokesperson Jonathan Swain said that the university is in the process of evaluating its admissions processes. Swain did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the status of the civil rights investigation.
“Our review includes examination of a range of data and information, along with learnings from Harvard’s efforts over the past decade to strengthen our ability to attract and support a diverse intellectual community,” Swain said.
The nonprofit group Lawyers for Civil Rights filed the federal complaint earlier this month, which calls for an investigation into Harvard’s admissions policies with the goal to end preferences for children of alumni and wealthy donors.
The complaint, which was filed with the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, asks federal investigators to “declare that Harvard’s ongoing use of Donor and Legacy Preferences is discriminatory,” and says that the university should cease legacy preferences if it “wishes to continue receiving federal funds.”
Advocates say that if colleges cannot grant an advantage to applicants for the color of their skin, then it is unfair to offer an advantage to students for who their parents are. Research released Monday confirms that legacy applicants, especially those from high-income backgrounds, receive the largest boost in the admissions process at highly selective colleges, followed by recruited athletes, who mostly come from wealthy backgrounds and are overwhelmingly white at top schools. High-income students who attend private high schools are also more likely to gain admission to top colleges, the research found.
“These kids with a strong non-academic rating, legacy kids, the athletes — is it justified that they get in [to top schools] at higher rates?” said Raj Chetty, a Harvard economist and professor, who co-wrote the report. “Do we see them having better outcomes? The answer to that is no. As we’re thinking about diversity in a post-affirmative-action world, can we make progress by not implicitly or unintentionally having affirmative action for the rich?”
Last week, Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn., said it is ending the practice of favoring children of alumni in admissions. Massachusetts colleges that currently do not consider legacy admissions include Amherst College, MIT, Boston University, Emerson College, University of Massachusetts Amherst, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
A spokesperson for Tufts University confirmed last week that the school expects to review its use of legacy preferences following an internal study; some of its graduate schools, including the medical school, have already ended the practice.
Dartmouth College last week told the Boston Globe that it will continue to use legacy preferences in its admissions process.
“A legacy connection will continue to be one factor among dozens that Dartmouth considers when evaluating applicants; those categories include academic performance, qualitative information from essays and recommendations, extracurricular engagement, geography, and academic interests, among others,” the spokesperson said.
The other Ivy League schools did not respond to questions from the Globe regarding their continued use of legacy admissions.
Up next, Yale.
the university should cease legacy preferences if it “wishes to continue receiving federal funds.”
With billions in the bank, I would think it time that Harvard tell Washington to go to hell. Then prioritize its strengths and dump the bullshiiite. But it has been on the govt teat for so long, its administration is so cowardly, that is out of the question.
Of course it is. But it will hurt those who in the past it helped. Like the Obama girls for example.
I think the Ivies each have as much money in endowment as some foreign countries. Mammon is an addiction.
You can stop legacy students all you want but it won’t help get brown kids into the Ivy League .
The problem isn't getting the affirmative action diversity warm bodies into the Ivy League (or better places). The problem is making successful students in worthwhile courses of study out of them.
The obvious difference is that race based admissions are illegal, whereas legacy admissions are not.
If little Gretta keeps that up her face is going to stay that way.
Exactly so. This is BS but since it’s a lib private concern reaping what it sowed by supporting thes tyrants, and by cranking out mind numbed robots by the tens of thousands who agree with tyrannical government, well, f’em I say
“Disparate impact,” is what they’ll argue. It’s the catch-all for everything they don’t like!
The investigation will focus on whether Harvard “discriminates on the basis of race by using donor and legacy preferences in its undergraduate admissions process,” according to a letter from the Department of Education to the attorney for the group that filed the complaint.
The investigation will focus on whether such policies violate Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits organizations that receive federal funding from discriminating on the basis of race.
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What? No inquiry for the ivy league U of Penn .......
home of the Biden Center.......where the Biden kids matriculate....with lots of Biden legacy.
Admissions in return for large donations are not racial discrimination. They can endow scholarship funds for students of all races.
Gee - will Navy go to Penn?
lol.....good question
There shouldn’t even be a US Department of Education.
It follows from this that using grades, test scores, previous achievement - in fact any merit-based factor, discriminates on the basis of race (since historically some races have done better or worse than others overall) and can't be used. This is ridiculous.
“Admissions in return for large donations are not racial discrimination. They can endow scholarship funds for students of all races.”
Exactly
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