Today, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) found the consideration of race as one of several factors in college admissions at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina to be unconstitutional. The ruling, which was split ideologically six-to-three, applies to all higher education institutions.
Although we at the National College Attainment Network (NCAN) suspected this decision was coming, it still feels devastating. Today’s ruling runs counter to the experiences of NCAN members and the students and families they serve across the country. Those
experiences tell us that diverse learning environments benefit all members of a campus community, and many of those communities will lose something essential in light of today's ruling. Whether or not a student enters and completes college is still
far too dependent on the color of their skin. As Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson noted in her passionate dissent, "if the colleges of the country are required to ignore a thing that matters, it will not just go away. it will take longer for
racism to leave us." Today’s ruling indeed took away a meaningful tool for redressing racial discrimination in higher education.
In the coming weeks, NCAN will digest the decision and consult with partners and experts for what it means for supporting students of color going forward. We will continue to work with our members and allies across the country to fight to mitigate this
ruling's effects and to find new ways forward that increase access for students. But today, we urge you to provide extra space for colleagues and former, current, and future students of color whose own lived experiences tell us we are still far in
this country from "the absolute equality of all citizens" that Chief Justice John Roberts refers to in today’s opinion.
In response, NCAN asks policymakers and higher education leaders to make greater investments in need-based financial aid, student outreach, and inclusion. Now is the time to renew their commitment and partner more deeply with postsecondary access and
success programs.
We are failing too many students of color, allowing them to go unsupported in getting the education beyond high school they need and deserve. NCAN invites everyone to join in the fight for all students to have an equitable opportunity to achieve social
and economic mobility through higher education.
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