"A student's racial and ethnic background should never be the sole factor in an admissions decision. But to prohibit schools from considering it as one of many factors is wrong."

John,

Today, a Supreme Court decision barred colleges and universities from considering race or ethnicity in admissions -- undermining affirmative action policies in higher education.

In a message published in response, Mike writes that while "American higher education is the envy of the world," the work to expand access to colleges and universities is far from complete:

"One of the great challenges we face is ensuring that these institutions reflect the broad diversity of America's communities. Throughout our history and still today, that has not been the case. And unfortunately, the Supreme Court's decision on affirmative action will make it harder for colleges and universities to be what our country urgently needs them to be: engines of opportunity that propel us toward a more equal society."

READ MIKE'S FULL STATEMENT

College and university admissions have long been guided by the goal of building a student body that is balanced across a range of factors, including but not limited to racial and ethnic diversity.

Today's Supreme Court decision will not, as the arguments opposing affirmative action often claim, transform college admissions into a purely merit-based system. It will, however, eliminate a tool for ensuring that the benefits of higher education reach students who have traditionally missed out. As Mike writes: "Are we really going to prohibit schools from taking an applicant's race or ethnicity into account when forming a freshman class, while permitting them to consider prospective students' gender and geography -- and also legacy status and athletic skills? That makes no sense." Read more →

Nor will it end efforts to fulfill the goals that were sought by affirmative action: "The Supreme Court decision does not mean that diversity on campuses must suffer. It just means we must act more boldly. One way we can do that is by increasing financial aid -- public and private -- to increase need-blind admissions."

Read Mike's full message on today's Supreme Court decision, and how colleges and universities can move forward from here:

https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2023-06-29/supreme-court-affirmative-action-ruling-isn-t-end-of-diversity

Thanks,

MikeBloomberg.com