Supreme Court ruling on Affirmative Action threatens to make U.S. higher education less racially ... [+]
The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to soon rule on two cases that will determine the constitutionality of race-conscious admissions practices. Given the current makeup of the Court, many leaders and experts in higher education are anticipating the death of affirmative action as early as June. Ahead of the ruling, a group of liberal arts college presidents published an open letter to affirm their institutions’ commitments to diversity, regardless of what the Supreme Court Justices ultimately decide.
“As liberal arts presidents, our collective commitment is to education and knowledge, to equity and to access,” says Occidental College President Harry Elam, one of the signatories. “Together, we need to educate our various constituencies to understand that DEI work is not divisive but rather incisive in providing a level playing field and an inclusive environment where all can succeed and belong.”
Presidents who lead campuses that are members of the Liberal Arts Colleges Racial Equity Leadership Alliance, a 71-institution consortium founded three years ago, spent weeks co-writing the open letter. These leaders meet quarterly. Faculty and staff members across their campuses gather together monthly for professional learning sessions on various racial equity topics, some of which have focused on increasing diversity among students and employees. A constitutional ban on race-conscious admissions would not only severely complicate efforts to recruit highly-qualified, talented people of color to these colleges – it would also negatively affect democracy, as the presidents note in their statement.
“Losing affirmative action will likely have the immediate effect of radically decreasing equal access to educational opportunity in America,” predicts Pomona College President G. Gabrielle Starr. “Affirmative action is a tactic for achieving equal access, a tactic about which reasonable people may disagree, but I hope America will unite to recommit to the principle that human value is inherent in us all, and will recognize that we still have a long way to go to make the ideals of equality a reality in our country.”
Similarly, Colorado College President L. Song Richardson insists, “we need all the tools at our disposal to maintain and increase diversity. If we lose affirmative action, we also will lose the innovation, creativity, and imagination that are necessary to find solutions to the greatest issues of our time, such as climate change, poverty, hunger, health, and safety. Education is a human right, and when access to it is hampered, it holds back generations.”
Over the past two decades, almost all of the liberal arts colleges that comprise the Alliance (the overwhelming majority of which are private institutions) have made tremendous gains in diversifying their student populations. On average, 41% of undergraduates on these campuses are students of color. Even though the aggregate percentage is good, the numbers of Black, Indigenous, Latino, and Pacific Islander students remain especially small at these institutions. The presidents’ open letter argues that more, not less racial diversity is needed to ensure that college campuses reflect the racial composition of our nation. Macalester College President Suzanne M. Rivera notes, “The health of our democracy requires that we take seriously the importance of expanding educational opportunity. We have made so much progress and we cannot afford to lose ground.”
Institutions in this alliance are highly residential – meaning, most students live on campus and learn alongside each other for the entirety of their college years. While many are located in rural and suburban contexts, these schools tend to attract applicants from all 50 states and numerous countries around the world. Race-conscious admissions practices have enabled them to be deliberate about ensuring that learners who come from racially segregated residential and K-12 schooling environments are afforded opportunities to benefit from the perspectives and life experiences that their diverse peers bring to these small campuses. Size, diversity, educational purpose, and mission clarity are among the features that make these particular higher education institutions unique.
“There hasn’t been a more important time in our fragile democracy for liberal arts colleges to be the institutions that continue to attract and support a diverse student body that learns from the challenges and opportunities that come with living, studying, working, and developing community together,” asserts DePauw University President Lori S. White. “The experiences students gain in our small, diverse residential learning communities will ultimately strengthen our country.” White and other presidents who signed the open letter have pledged to do all it takes, within the confines of the impending Supreme Court ruling, to keep diversity, equity, and inclusion among their institutions’ highest priorities.
