Inside Higher Ed: Proxies for race
When voters abolish affirmative action programs, universities seeking to preserve diverse student bodies frequently look for criteria that are race neutral, but that may help a disproportionate number of minority applicants. That’s how Texas ended up with the 10 percent plan that guarantees admission to those at the top of their high school class.
With last month’s vote in Michigan to abolish affirmative action in public higher education, that state’s universities are looking for new approaches to admissions. One of the first concrete plans — by the law school at Wayne State University — is already setting off controversy. The faculty there will vote on a plan that would replace its current admissions policy with a race-neutral one. However, preferences would be added for students who are Native Americans, have overcome discrimination or prejudice, or live in Detroit.
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