Report Suggests Ways to Achieve Diversity

A February 2004 report by the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights offers ideas for increasing the diversity of the U.S. student body without explicitly using race as a factor in recruiting or admissions.

The report, titled Achieving Diversity: Race-Neutral Alternatives in American Education, builds on a similar study released by the education department last year, before the June 2003 Supreme Court ruling on racial preferences in the admissions policies of the University of Michigan. The Court found diversity in higher education to be a compelling state interest but ruled that colleges and universities may not apply rigid racial quotas to incoming classes. The Bush administration, which opposes race as a criterion for admissions, sided against the University of Michigan in the case.

The original report, published in March 2003, cited approaches used by colleges to increase diversity without overtly considering race. The new report broadens the scope of the original document, adding examples of what institutions have done to increase diversity in their student populations since the Michigan ruling.

"The goal here is not to tell people what they cannot do or where the court-imposed limitations on racial or ethnic considerations may fall," says Kenneth Marcus of the education department. "Rather, we hope to highlight several approaches that appear, from early indications, to be promising."

The report divides race-neutral programs into two categories. The first category, "developmental approaches," includes programs designed to diversify enrollments by helping applicants to meet entry requirements and achieve academic success. These include increasing the availability of advanced placement courses among low-income students, creating partnerships between colleges and low-performing high schools, and directing more financial aid toward students in low-income areas.

Other programs are put into the category of "admissions approaches," which are designed to diversify enrollments through admissions policies and procedures. Examples of such policies include admissions based on socioeconomic factors, class rank, and lotteries.

Critics have challenged several of the approaches cited in the report, arguing that their success has been overrated. They have noted that many of the suggested approaches require state action, are impractical for all but a few large public institutions, and rely for their success on the fact that many high schools remain racially segregated.