It’s October, and application season is in full swing, despite the delayed rollout of the 2024-25 Free Application for
Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). We at the National College Attainment Network (NCAN) knew it’d be crucial at our annual convening of members and partners to discuss next steps after the Supreme Court’s June ruling that struck down race-conscious college admissions practices.
Our dynamic panel of state and national thought leaders in the field, moderated by Executive Director of College and Career Readiness at the Riverside County Office of Education Catalina Cifuentes, and
panelists Director of Educate Texas Shareea Woods, Government Relations Co-Chair of the Texas Association for College Admission Counseling Narietha
Carter-McClain, and President and CEO of Common App Jenny Rickard, came together at our 2023 National Conference to discuss strategies and insights on how we can move through these early months
of life post ruling.
The Racial Identity Question
Cifuentes reminded everyone that the context we have as professionals is necessary to keep in mind. For students, the confusion and fear is even more real. “Students aren't reading all the policy and literature we are. They just hear what's in the media.
They have questions like, ‘am I going to get arrested if I write about my race and ethnicity in my essay?’”
Rickard confirmed that Common App has offered its partner institutions the option to either hide the racial demographic question entirely or to allow students to self-identify, but schools can choose to hide that information from the collected data they
receive. She also noted that so far this application season, there’s been a 1% change in the students choosing to disclose race. Given the timing of the ruling, Rickard said it's too early to have significant data on if more schools are adding essays,
removing the race question, or opting out of racial data collection on the back end.
Woods said, “[The ruling] didn't change how it made the people feel. My team and I felt angry, frustrated, and sad because we already know how hard the work is. We felt like this was working against us. We don't know campus by campus how this will play
out. I believe the values of the universities who were collecting race data in 2022 are not going to change. I would tell students to tell your story. I would always caution against telling students to not tell their story.”
Culturally Impactful Storytelling
Many practitioners are putting more emphasis on the essay, considering it one of our strongest tools in the fight to maintain diverse incoming college classes. Carter-McClain said, “Your essay should be able to get up and walk around; it’s going to be
in rooms your feet will never touch. I'm very critical with my feedback of students’ essays. Students can focus on their culture in a way that goes down deeper than race. There was a student who created 12 access points for clean water for in his
village in India by reinvesting his high-end sneakers. His grandmother had to walk two hours to get water. He acknowledged his race, but he also acknowledged his culture and privilege.”
Woods emphasized the importance of admissions teams' role in the process, stressing the need to be proactive and creatively responsive. “I'm worried that students won't apply because they feel like they won't belong there. Admissions are the best folks
to combat that [fear]. Direct outreach is going to be key. Early exposure is key; senior year is too late. Selective schools should also look into more transfer pathways,” she said.
When asked about best practices to encourage diversity, Rickard mentioned Common App’s student context inventory, which is getting
students involved with the application process to explore the unusual extra extracurricular activities, like translating for family members, taking care of siblings, or working on a farm or in a family business. “Students don't always think these
things are relevant or worth mentioning [in their applications/essays] but they are.”
Rickard also noted the importance of increasing direct admission offers. “We want to remove some of the stress of pressing that submit button on their application. We're trying to stress that students have options [in where they go to college] and instill
confidence along the way in the process.”
Moving Forward
Rickard stood firm on Common App’s commitment to the next generation of students. “By 2030, we're looking to close our equity gap. Our goal is to get 650,000 more lower- and middle-income students to use Common App by working with our university partners.”
What we don’t want to lose sight of in this crucial conversation about diversity, equity, and inclusion is the other letter in the acronym – the B, which stands for belonging. As Woods suggested, “We don't talk about the students who are getting into
selective schools and that they have options. They might visit a selective school and say this isn't for me and choose an HBCU or somewhere else. Does the curriculum and faculty reflect diversity? It's not just the student body that matters.”
While advisors are scrambling to rearrange programming for the FAFSA this fall, Carter-McClain doubled down on the importance of strong essays. “We have a lot of college application and financial aid nights, but we need to have more essay nights so students'
essays can help represent them in places and spaces properly,” she said. We know this work can be daunting, but with partnerships and collaboration, we can help students become better narrators of their own stories.
The Supreme Court ruling definitely took an emotional toll on many of us, but Woods left us some encouraging words for the journey ahead. “Don't let students give up. Many students feel like, if they don't want us, then we just won't go. And we'll find another alternative. But we want to get to that second and third generation of college attendance, so we can't give up.”
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