Race-conscious admissions in US universities have long been a subject of heated debate, with policies designed to promote campus diversity facing both staunch advocacy and rigorous opposition. This contentious issue culminated in the Supreme Court’s landmark 2023 decision in Students for Fair Admissions vs. Harvard, which declared race-based affirmative action in college admissions unconstitutional. The ruling’s implications extend beyond admissions, challenging various race-conscious practices within educational settings.
Recently, the Department of Education (DOE) intensified this initiative by issuing directives to several federally funded institutions, including Stanford University, mandating the cessation of race-based practices in admissions, financial aid, hiring, and campus life. The DOE’s letter, signed by Acting Assistant Secretary Craig Trainor, explicitly instructed these institutions to discontinue race-based decision-making in areas such as hiring, promotions, scholarships, and housing. Non-compliance with these directives carries the threat of losing federal funding, underscoring the administration’s commitment to enforcing a colorblind approach in education.
What does the letter say?
The DOE underscored that the ruling’s impact goes well beyond admissions, mandating institutions to eliminate race-based decision-making across a wide spectrum of policies, including:
- Hiring and promotions: Universities must not use race as a factor in employment decisions, from faculty hiring to promotions and compensation.
- Financial aid, scholarships, and prizes: Race-conscious considerations in awarding financial assistance or scholarships are prohibited.
- Campus life activities: The letter calls for an end to race-based policies in areas such as housing, disciplinary actions, graduation ceremonies, and other aspects of student and academic life.
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives: The DOE instructs universities to discontinue DEI programs that incorporate race as a factor, which includes a broad spectrum of student engagement activities and initiatives.
The letter also warns that schools may not use students’ personal essays, extracurricular participation, or other non-academic factors as indirect indicators of race. This echoes concerns that some institutions had been using essay questions that prompted applicants to discuss their “cultural background” or “lived experiences” as a way to indirectly consider race in the admissions process.
The DOE also clarified that institutions must comply with these directives within 2 weeks. Warning that failure to adhere could result in the loss of federal funding. This gives universities a very short window to review their current practices and make necessary changes in response to the new guidance.
Stanford’s response
Farnaz Khadem, Vice President for University Communications at Stanford wrote in an email affirming university’s stance by saying, “We are carefully studying this latest letter to see whether any further actions are required on the part of the university”
Stanford’s response comes at a time when the university is already reevaluating its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives. In the wake of President Trump’s recent order targeting DEI programmes, several diversity-related statements and commitments were removed from the university’s websites.
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