Why doesn’t the Education Department collect racial data on college applicants?

In The News

November 29, 2022

From Higher Ed Dive

By Jeremy Bauer-Wolf

November 29, 2022

In many higher education circles, it’s a foregone conclusion the conservative-tilted U.S. Supreme Court will rule against race-conscious admissions next year, halting the practice for colleges nationwide.

Practically, this prohibition would affect a small slice of institutions, as most colleges accept a lion’s share of applicants. But experts do anticipate striking down race-conscious practices would weaken student body diversity on those campuses, and more broadly, college leaders are concerned about the message an adverse ruling would send to historically underrepresented applicants. 

To combat potential decay of campus diversity, colleges — but also policymakers, education advocates and higher ed associations — will need more information about admissions trends, one researcher argues. 

Read the full story here.