The college admissions process is a varying source of stress for graduating high school students. Affirmative action, a government policy promoting diversity at universities, grants certain minority groups an advantage for college applications Since 1990, U.S. colleges’ affirmative action policies, created by admissions officers and the government, have caused conflicting economic effects, including financial aid and scholarship availability, insufficient socioeconomic diversity, and federal incentives for African and Asian American students.
Universities use several methods to attract potential minority students to their campuses, and the most popular are financial aid packages and race-based scholarships. African Americans are naturally a …show more content…
Universities are more likely to admit an African American student of a higher economic class rather than a low-income student. An article showing the failures of affirmative action by Richard Kahlenberg, a Harvard graduate and an author of educational issues, argues, “The achievement gap by income is twice the size of the gap by race, and … affluent parents spend nine times as much money developing the talents of their children as low-income parents.” Selective universities often look for students with superior academic ability and multiple extracurricular activities; however, graduates from impoverished neighborhoods often do not have the means to develop well-roundedness. However, researchers, such as Kahlenberg, argue methods, including financial aid, are not effective in promoting racial and economic diversity In his article about the future of affirmative action, Richard Rothstein, a member of the Economic Policy Institute, claims “Elite colleges fulfill goals for black enrollment with children of well-educated African and Afro-Caribbean immigrants rather than descendants of American slaves.” A majority of people benefiting from affirmative action are the wealthy sector of the population, not the intended beneficiaries: the descendants of American slaves. The impact spreads further to the remainder of the student population. Inadequate socioeconomic variation shapes a student’s college …show more content…
John Williams, a former affirmative action officer at Harvard University, created an analysis of the policies at Harvard and states “Upon finding adequate ‘good faith effort,’ OFCCP routinely lets [institutions] off the hook and experiences little pressure to do otherwise.” The government becomes more lenient for certain institutions if universities enforce their proposed affirmative action policies and upholds the standards of the government. The Department of Labor, the federal department that regulates affirmative action, encourages colleges with federal contracts (money which can fund programs within institutions). “If the award of financial aid based on race or national origin is justified as a remedy for past discrimination, the college may use funds from any source, including unrestricted institutional funds and privately donated funds restricted by the donor for aid based on race or national origin” (“Nondiscrimination in Financially”). However, a greater percentage of the elite are admitted rather than direct “descendants of American slaves” (Kahlenberg). Instead, the government focuses on a diverse student body to represent American education. Furthermore, many policy makers justify affirmative action by stating it is the key to the future economy. In the Fisher v. University of
Universities use several methods to attract potential minority students to their campuses, and the most popular are financial aid packages and race-based scholarships. African Americans are naturally a …show more content…
Universities are more likely to admit an African American student of a higher economic class rather than a low-income student. An article showing the failures of affirmative action by Richard Kahlenberg, a Harvard graduate and an author of educational issues, argues, “The achievement gap by income is twice the size of the gap by race, and … affluent parents spend nine times as much money developing the talents of their children as low-income parents.” Selective universities often look for students with superior academic ability and multiple extracurricular activities; however, graduates from impoverished neighborhoods often do not have the means to develop well-roundedness. However, researchers, such as Kahlenberg, argue methods, including financial aid, are not effective in promoting racial and economic diversity In his article about the future of affirmative action, Richard Rothstein, a member of the Economic Policy Institute, claims “Elite colleges fulfill goals for black enrollment with children of well-educated African and Afro-Caribbean immigrants rather than descendants of American slaves.” A majority of people benefiting from affirmative action are the wealthy sector of the population, not the intended beneficiaries: the descendants of American slaves. The impact spreads further to the remainder of the student population. Inadequate socioeconomic variation shapes a student’s college …show more content…
John Williams, a former affirmative action officer at Harvard University, created an analysis of the policies at Harvard and states “Upon finding adequate ‘good faith effort,’ OFCCP routinely lets [institutions] off the hook and experiences little pressure to do otherwise.” The government becomes more lenient for certain institutions if universities enforce their proposed affirmative action policies and upholds the standards of the government. The Department of Labor, the federal department that regulates affirmative action, encourages colleges with federal contracts (money which can fund programs within institutions). “If the award of financial aid based on race or national origin is justified as a remedy for past discrimination, the college may use funds from any source, including unrestricted institutional funds and privately donated funds restricted by the donor for aid based on race or national origin” (“Nondiscrimination in Financially”). However, a greater percentage of the elite are admitted rather than direct “descendants of American slaves” (Kahlenberg). Instead, the government focuses on a diverse student body to represent American education. Furthermore, many policy makers justify affirmative action by stating it is the key to the future economy. In the Fisher v. University of