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| HARVARD |
ASAM NEWS
A LAWSUIT designed to alter the admittance policies at the nation’s elite universities will be heard beginning today (Monday, Oct. 15) in Massachusetts.
The discrimination case backed by the Trump administration puts Asian Americans at the center of the case, alleging that Harvard’s policies put Asian American applicants at a disadvantage.
“They’ve heard about this lawsuit or they’ve heard through the grapevine that it’s harder to get admitted if they’re Asian,” said college counselor Alyson Tom to PRI. “I have some families that strongly believe that Asian American families are discriminated against in highly selective admissions. And I have other families who are not concerned about that and have faith in the system. It runs the full spectrum.”
The case, however it is decided, is expected to head to the U.S. Supreme Court, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education. The court took a decided turn to the right with the addition of Brett Kavanaugh to the bench this month.
The Chronicle also reported that Harvard has a “dean’s interest list” that includes a list of applicants from donor families. There’s also a “Z list” that allegedly includes applicants from well connected families who would otherwise not be admitted.
“Obviously there are some factors that seem to be against Asians or at least make it tougher for them to get into these universities,” says parent Sanjay Dave to PRI.
Since 2016, the percentage of Harvard admits who are Asian American has risen from 17 percent to 22.9 percent.
According to a 2018 survey by AAPI Data, 58 percent of all Asian Americans support affirmative action.
Seventeen-year old Becca, who asked PRI not to use her full name, sees the benefits of affirmative action in her classroom.
“A lot of the classes I’m in, we have people of all different backgrounds,” she says. “When we have discussions about literature or historic events, a lot of these people can bring in stories about their own grandparents who have lived through a war in Asia or Europe.”
She says using affirmative action to achieve that is worthwhile.
The discrimination case backed by the Trump administration puts Asian Americans at the center of the case, alleging that Harvard’s policies put Asian American applicants at a disadvantage.
RELATED: A closer look at affirmative action and Asian AmericansThe case has many Asian American parents talking.
“They’ve heard about this lawsuit or they’ve heard through the grapevine that it’s harder to get admitted if they’re Asian,” said college counselor Alyson Tom to PRI. “I have some families that strongly believe that Asian American families are discriminated against in highly selective admissions. And I have other families who are not concerned about that and have faith in the system. It runs the full spectrum.”
The case, however it is decided, is expected to head to the U.S. Supreme Court, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education. The court took a decided turn to the right with the addition of Brett Kavanaugh to the bench this month.
The Chronicle also reported that Harvard has a “dean’s interest list” that includes a list of applicants from donor families. There’s also a “Z list” that allegedly includes applicants from well connected families who would otherwise not be admitted.
“Obviously there are some factors that seem to be against Asians or at least make it tougher for them to get into these universities,” says parent Sanjay Dave to PRI.
Since 2016, the percentage of Harvard admits who are Asian American has risen from 17 percent to 22.9 percent.
According to a 2018 survey by AAPI Data, 58 percent of all Asian Americans support affirmative action.
Seventeen-year old Becca, who asked PRI not to use her full name, sees the benefits of affirmative action in her classroom.
“A lot of the classes I’m in, we have people of all different backgrounds,” she says. “When we have discussions about literature or historic events, a lot of these people can bring in stories about their own grandparents who have lived through a war in Asia or Europe.”
She says using affirmative action to achieve that is worthwhile.
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