Race and College Admissions

Race and College Admissions
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Race and College Admissions
Introduction
The history of elite American colleges and universities is reserved for wealthy and mostly white Americans. Diversity was prioritized in the 20th century. It was initiated by affirmative action and other tools adopted to integrate in terms of racial and ethnic diversity. The use of race in admissions has consistently been upheld by the U.S Supreme Court and has found a stronghold in the Trump administration. The conflict in the use of race and ethnicity is explained that in some situations, some qualified students may be denied entry to good schools due to the inclusivity and homogeneity, but some of these students may be from a different social-economic background. Over time, civil rights groups have been in advocacy of affirmative action to promote educational equity across groups. Race-conscious admissions encouraged proper representation in colleges and prioritized the diversity benefits to students of all backgrounds. Diversity in college campuses enables other forms of diversity that are not income-related. It also helps create and promote social mobility.
Affirmative Action to Diversity in College Admissions
The American Sociological Association (ASA) submitted a brief to the U.S. Supreme Court case on affirmative action in college university admissions (Poole et al., 2020). The submission explored the need to consider race as a factor in access to higher learning institutions. The Supreme Court heard the arguments in the suit opposing the use of race in admission at the University of Michigan. A court ruling in favor of the use of race as unconstitutional would significantly affect the admission procedures along with financial aid programs to benefit private and public institutions all over America. The ASA brief contains a summary of social science research exploring the fact that race is a necessary life experience for people of color in America. It summarizes that race is a significant factor in their neighborhood context and the quality of education that many minorities receive.
A unanimous Supreme Court in 1954 acknowledged that racial discrimination and segregation affect the minds and hearts of children in an irreversible way. Most segregated schools experience problems related to inadequate resources and low staffing. Growing up non-black in America renders a different or lower quality of life for minorities as compared to whites. Admission to college campuses based on merit can deny the admission officers crucial information on the consideration of other life experiences and may fail to properly promote evident ethnic and racial diversity. Universities have a compelling interest to consider race in student selection due to the life experiences of minorities such as Latinos, Blacks, and Native Americans. They should look at the individuals who stand to benefit from educational and other adventures in colleges that may help them diversify their diverse perspectives and individual talents. The argument is that universities and colleges have a compelling interest to consider the life experiences of growing up as a minority. Race and gender are key aspects of social identity because they define how people view one another and shape one of the life experiences. Racial discrimination still shapes many lives of minority children. Hence, it is crucial for universities to assess individuals based on race.
Residential segregation is a common feature in America's landscape. Research shows that the average black-white segregation in metropolitan areas in the U.S. stands at 65 in the North West (Poole et al., 2020). In the Midwest, moderate segregation stands at 74 (Poole et al., 2020). The numbers are progressive in Detroit to New York. These figures make America the country with the most persistent levels of segregation. Most Latinas or people who identify as Hispanics have their segregation indices above 60 (Borgs, 2019). The case is also similar among the Native Americans. The key driving factor to this segregation is racism. A study shows that most Black Americans would prefer to live in integrated neighborhoods. (Flores et al., 2017). Most of those who live in all-African American areas believe they are unwelcome in integrated communities. Despite the fact that most white residents would be open to having black neighbors, blacks are viewed as the least wanted potential neighbors. Many blacks have experienced outright discrimination in real estate rentals. They are also treated differently in sales and mortgage approvals. For Latinos, similar discrimination occurs as per the level of their skin tone. Darker Latinos are likely to experience real estate discrimination. Racial bias has been fueled by acts of occasional intentional violence among minorities, racial avoidance, isolation in public housing, and local zoning decisions. Residential segregation has an impact on minorities. These neighborhoods have poor municipal services, longer commutes to high-paying jobs, and inferior schools.
School segregation has been fueled by long-overdue racial segregation. Even after the judiciary enforces desegregation, the integration of schools has remained at a staggering 70% (Poole et al., 2020). There are not many students from black and Latino backgrounds attending predominantly white schools. Over 75% of Latino students attend schools that are over 90% minority (Poole et al., 2020). Latino children in California have a higher tendency to go to hyper-segregated schools as compared to African American students. It is clear that predominantly white schools have a higher chance of academic achievement. School segregation limits the capacity of minority children. Black children who attend majority-white populated schools are likely to take college prep courses and attend college. Minority schools are likely to have low financial resources that directly affect physical facilities, teacher quantity, and class size. Access to equally motivated students and teaching material jeopardize the student's test performance and learning. Also, poor learning creates problems such as drug abuse, poverty, and violence. The least proficient teachers are assigned to the least desirable schools.
Black and Hispanic communities have lower incomes than white families. This economic disadvantage creates an even more considerable race difference. It created limited options for minority students to access tutoring, home computers, special classes enriching summer camps, foreign travel, and sports and music equipment. These children are less likely to experience cultural enrichment activities that selective universities demand. Also, test preparation classes, which increase student's scores, are expensive and hence unavailable to students of economically disadvantaged neighborhoods.
Children from minority families experience negative racially biased interactions with their peers and teachers. They are exposed to non-white stigmatization at an early age. Social scientists reveal that young children use racial terms to describe others and themselves. There have been numerous records that s...