A Dream Undone? Higher Education Access and Opportunity in a Shifting Legal Landscape
The Civil Rights Project – in partnership with the American Council on Education’s Center for Policy Research and Strategy, Center for College & Career Success in Pearson’s Research and Innovation Network, National Association for College Admissions Counseling, American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers, The College Board, and EducationCounsel – has embarked on a groundbreaking study to examine how legal challenges to race-conscious admissions have changed contemporary admissions practices at selective colleges and universities.
We are specifically interested in:
(1) how statewide legislation and recent Supreme Court rulings have impacted outreach, recruitment, and admissions practices and,
(2) how admissions deans and enrollment managers are preparing for a future where the only legal constant seems to be change.
We also intend to learn how research, practitioner, and legal communities can better support institutions seeking to enroll diverse student bodies now and in the future. To that end we will catalog innovative strategies and leading practices implemented by institutions that have been forced to adapt to race-blind admissions requirements.
College admissions policies tend to be closely guarded secrets, which is rather unsurprising given the high stakes and controversy that attend admissions considerations. But if “race-neutral alternatives” become the dominant driver for diversity, admissions officers cannot afford to work in an information vacuum. As such, we aim for this study to serve as a practice resource for schools that seek to advance diversity and access but must now cope with heightened scrutiny around race-conscious admissions.
This research will provide a confidential avenue by which admissions offices can share practices and challenges as they work to support access and campus diversity while facing constantly shifting legal parameters.
For more information on the project, click here.
