Source: San Francisco Chronicle
Universities across the country lost the right to consider the race of applicants in admissions decisions last year when the U.S. Supreme Court outlawed affirmative action in higher education.
But five California private schools, including Stanford and Santa Clara universities, continue to give preferential treatment to the children of alumni or wealthy donors who apply for admission, which was not part of the court’s ban.
.... But a bill making its way through the Legislature, AB1780, would, for the first time, outlaw legacy and donor-driven admissions entirely as of Sept. 1, 2025, including at private institutions.
... “The enforcement mechanism would be a lawsuit,” said the bill’s author, Assembly Member Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, who also wrote the 2019 reporting law.
“This is affirmative action for the wealthiest Americans,” Ting said of legacy admissions. “These are not private clubs. These institutions change the trajectory of people’s lives and impact their earnings. Showing preference to the wealthiest is to hurt the ability of the middle class to improve their economic situation.”
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