Be careful what you wish for

Most people would agree with the goal of affirmative action – to expand the opportunities for women and minorities. Reasonable people recognize that working toward this goal is a noble pursuit. The problem stems from the means to reach this end.

Affirmative action implies making “positive efforts” to achieve the goal outlined above. Tacking on bonus points for race or gender to an admissions application is neither positive nor does it require much effort. As long as race or gender is used as a factor, animosity will exist because a deserving member of a non-protected class of citizens will be passed over. The controversy will never be eliminated and the perpetual battle will continue.

Continuing to allow the government to use race or gender in determining public policy is a continuation of the discriminatory environment we are trying to eliminate. When dealing with government, never forget that a government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take away everything you've got.

Today, preferential treatment goes to minorities and women. Who gets it tomorrow? But perhaps tomorrow is already here. On March 23rd, Jennifer Delahunty Britz, the dean of admissions and financial aid at Kenyon College in Ohio, wrote an op-ed in The New York Times titled “To All the Girls I’ve Rejected.”

Britz describes the difficult process she faces when evaluating female applicants to her college. She describes an applicant with excellent credentials. A young woman who “was the leader/president/editor/captain/lead actress in every activity in her school. . .had taken six advanced placement courses . . .had been selected for a prestigious state leadership program . . had accumulated more than 300 hours of community service in four different organizations.” Unfortunately her test scores and grade point were average.

By her own admission, Britz states “Had she been a male applicant, there would have been little, if any, hesitation to admit. The reality is that because young men are rarer, they're more valued applicants.”

Instead of granting this woman admission to the college, she was rejected because the college determined it needed more men. In case you are not aware, men are attending college in substantially fewer numbers than women. If you favor race and gender preferences, you can expect to see more of this.

Rather than using race or gender to appease past discriminations, universities seeking a diverse student body need to take positive action. Universities should be working closely with the inner city schools that fail to prepare students for higher education. Mentoring disadvantaged students and building their academic credentials will help them succeed far better than adding points to their admission score.

Unlike other universities in the state, CMU has actually taken positive steps to improve the academic environment. CMU sponsors nearly 60 charter schools throughout the state and seeks to improve the life of many underprivileged children who have been abandoned by traditional public schools. This type of action is what our state needs to improve the quality of life for those less fortunate.

[Online response posted to Central Michigan Life. Posted 03/27/2006]