Liberty Planet – The Trump Administration is refusing to turn the other way as qualified students are denied admission to top tier universities which are putting too high a premium on race rather than merit.
Harvard and Yale are under investigation for using admissions practices that discriminate against Asian-Americans students as both universities face legal action by a number of students. Now, Texas Tech is also feeling the heat, and has agreed to base its admission standards solely on the qualifications of the applicants.
The complaint against Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, which was filed by the Center for Equal Opportunity, dates back to 2004. At that time, the Education Department’s Office on Civil Rights began to investigate the university. However, it has only now finished its probe and put pressure on Texas Tech to change its admission policies. Texas Tech agreed to cooperate with the Office on Civil Rights, and has now announced that the admissions department will not consider race when deciding who to admit to the university.
The medical school has already informed its admissions staff members of the policy change, and will revise all admissions and recruitment material to reflect the new policy. Furthermore, Texas Tech will provide official documentation to the Office on Civil Rights making it clear that race and national origin will not be considered when approving applications.
Not surprisingly, the fact that the Office of Civil Rights is holding Texas Tech and other educational institutions accountable for their unfair admissions practices has earned criticism from liberals who think that the color of one’s skin should play an outsized role in determining that individual’s status in life.
Thomas Saenz, the president of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, accused the U.S. government of enshrining an extreme agenda and preserving “white privilege.” The Root and other mainstream media outlets accused the Trump Administration of fighting against affirmative action. However, an important point that these and other critics tend to forget about is the fact that Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, unlike many other universities, is training professionals who will hold the power of life and death in their hands.
It’s far more important for doctors and specialists to be competent and qualified, not simply selected due to their skin color or national origin. Educational institutions are responsible to not put undue emphasis on race when deciding which applications to accept and which to reject.
Activists who complain that affirmative action is being eroded by this decision are in essence telling non-white Americans that they cannot make it on their own. Rather, they need special treatment in order to pursue the career of their choice.
Thankfully, the Education Department is no longer willing to put up with what is by any measure a blatantly racist policy.
SF Source Liberty Planet Apr 2019