Many North Texans may be wondering if the recent 6-3 U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down race-conscious or privilege-based college admissions will affect our children’s or grandchildren’s ability to get into their higher institutions of choice.
The Supreme Court ruling was based on the 45 years of policies of Harvard and the University of North Carolina, which respectively are the oldest private and public colleges in America. But it also affects any college or university which accepts federal funding, including student loans, thus including virtually all American colleges and universities (notable exception: conservative Hillsdale College in Michigan which does not accept any federal funds, including student loans.) Another exception was made for the country’s military academies, whose graduates constitute about 25% of our military officers’ corps. The Court’s ruling also forbids the practice of “legacy” admissions, where alumni or large donors’ relatives are given favoritism in admissions.
Those who oppose this ruling have claimed that because of shameful historical actions, black students especially should be more routinely admitted to colleges and universities. And they argue that as our state’s population demographics continue to evolve, the same preferable treatment should be given to Hispanic students.
But is race really the criteria which should be considered?
As the Dallas Morning News noted, “No admissions policy that is truly race-neutral will ever result in campuses that perfectly reflect demographic breakdowns, nor should that be the goal. The goal instead should be to ensure admissions policies which don’t favor the wealthy and the privileged over those who lack private tutors and the best school.”
How will this ruling affect Texas colleges and universities? Virtually not at all!
According to the Denton Record Chronicle, the University of Texas is the only public Texas university using race-conscious admissions. Locally, both Texas Woman’s University and the University of North Texas strive for a diverse faculty as well as student body. Apparently, both are achieving those goals. TWU has recently been recognized by US News and World Report as one of the top 20 most ethnically diverse universities in the country, having 34% Hispanic, 31% white, 18% black and 11% Asian students attending. UNT also is recognized as one of 21 Carnegie Tier universities designated as Hispanic-serving in 2022. Last year, UNT’s black and Hispanic student population increased by about 3% each.
However, the most basic problem among traditionally-non college populations is economic limitations, and TWU has set out also to address that at its source: family incomes. Last year, TWU announced a bold “no tuition guarantee” which is available for up to four years for first-time, incoming freshmen and up to three years to transfer students for Texans who are Pell-grant eligible. Though books and housing are not covered in this program, there well may be other financial aid and grants which will assist. The University of North Texas, with in-state tuition below $10,000 a year, also is developing a fixed-tuition option, striving to graduate students who will leave with both good jobs with as little debt as possible.
In summary, on the whole, the SCOTUS ruling will make few changes in Texas colleges and universities on race- or privilege-conscious admission policies.
However, another issue must be addressed by earlier educational institutions: the elementary through high schools in Texas. Our state Constitution guarantees an appropriate education to each child in the Lone Star State, but we are not consistently delivering on that. It is expected that Gov. Abbott will call a third special session (probably in October) to address education issues specifically.
So, stay tuned to see how this other piece of the puzzle fits into the college/university admissions for our children and grandchildren!
Contact Commissioner Dianne Edmondson by email at [email protected] or phone her at 972-434-3960. You can also stop by her office in the Southwest Courthouse, 6200 Canyon Falls Drive, Suite 900, in Flower Mound.
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