Connecticut lawmakers are considering banning the use of endowment and donor preferences in admissions to all colleges and universities in the state, including private ones like Yale University.
A bill was introduced to the full Senate on Thursday, days after Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed legislation prohibiting consideration of a student's family ties to a public college or university when being considered for admission. admission. The first law of its kind was signed in Colorado in 2021.
There has been opposition to the Connecticut bill from some private institutions in the state, including Yale, which have argued that the state should not dictate how admissions decisions are made, just as it should not dictate decisions about curriculum. and the hiring of teachers. But advocates point out that these schools, which receive significant tax benefits from their nonprofit status, have the power to provide all types of students with a ticket to an elite world.
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“If you look at the leaders of Fortune 500 companies, members of Congress and justices of the United States Supreme Court, this really matters in how our society operates,” said Democratic state Sen. Derek Slap, co-chair of the Higher Education Committee and the Employment Promotion Committee.
An Associated Press survey of the country's most selective colleges in 2022 found that legacy students in the freshman class ranged from 4% to 23%, although many schools declined to provide basic data in response to the request for AP. The AP found that at four schools (Notre Dame, USC, Cornell and Dartmouth) traditional students outnumbered black students.
Slap pointed out how last summer the U.S. Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in college admissions, showing that they have no institutional freedom to make preferences based on race.
A woman walks past a Yale sign reflected in rainwater on the Yale University campus on August 22, 2021, in New Haven, Connecticut. Connecticut lawmakers are considering banning the use of bequest and donor preferences in admissions to all colleges and universities in the state. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, File)
“I think it's atrocious, however, that this preference, that of rich people, continues,” he said.
Republican Sen. Kevin Kelly said he has heard from private schools in his district, especially religious colleges, who are concerned about how they would be affected by the legislation. He said the ability of higher education institutions to “exercise their freedom to teach how they are and what they are” has helped create “American exceptionalism.”
“I think that when the state government starts interfering in that process, we are not only interfering in the private relationships of the institutions, but we are also interfering in American excellence,” he said.
Jeremiah Quinlan, dean of Undergraduate Admissions and Financial Aid at Yale University, recently told state lawmakers that the school agrees with the bill's “core goal,” which is to enroll more low-income students and first generation. But in addition to the state overstepping its bounds, he said the bill doesn't address the key challenge of providing underserved students with the resources they need to prepare for college and graduate on time.
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He also said that Yale's undergraduate admissions office strives to “assemble a group of the most promising students from the most diverse backgrounds.” He said undergraduates from families who cannot afford the full cost of attending Yale receive a need-based scholarship that covers tuition, room and board, travel, books and personal expenses.
Last year, Wesleyan University, another private school in Connecticut, announced it would end its policy of giving preferential treatment in admissions to those whose families have historical ties to the school.
The bill, which passed the committee by a vote of 18-4, goes to the Senate for further action.
