In a recent brief filed by the Regents of the University of California asked the Supreme Court to consider reinstituting affirmative action in the UC admission process. Since 1998, when Proposition 209, went into effect, the UCs have been admitting students regardless of their racial background, among many other exterior characteristics. The UCs admissions offices should continue this policy and reject affirmative action.
In its brief, the Regents said, “In particular, the admission and enrollment of underrepresented minority students at a number of UC campuses still have not regained the levels that prevailed before Proposition 209 was enacted (in 1998).” The brief points to the percentages of African Americans who have been admitted since 1998 as results; in 1995, African Americans made up 7.3 percent of admitted freshmen at UC Berkeley, but by 1998, that figure had dropped to 3.2 percent. In 2010 and 2011, it was 3.9 percent.
While this argument also points to studies on the positive effect of diversity as its evidence, those studies have not been peer reviewed and widely criticized for its lack of depth in research. While diversity may in fact expose students to explore settings outside of their so-called “comfort zone,” there have been no proven facts that diversity leads to a greater college experience.
The argument of the UCs ignores a critical part of the admissions process: after students are accepted. One of the reasons affirmative action was rejected in 1996, when the voting took place, was because minority students who were accepted through affirmative action tended to have a greater dropout rate after their freshmen or sophomore year than those who were admitted regardless of race. Students cannot experience the diversity the UCs hope to provide for them if the diverse students are the ones struggling and dropping out early on.
A recent lawsuit filed against the University of Texas also supports this argument. In 2008, Abigail Fisher filed a lawsuit against the school for its affirmative action process that admitted only the top 10 percent of high school graduates, and after that, an admissions process based on race. Fisher met neither of the two categories.
While implementing affirmative action may seem like a short-term solution to represent California’s proud diversity throughout its education system, there are many flaws in the argument presented the UCs. Through affirmative action, the students who truly worked hard and shined throughout high school may not end up gaining admission merely because of the “race factor.”
