A Market Analysis of Race-Conscious University Admissions for Students of Color

Abstract

Recently, students of color and their supporters have raised considerable attention surrounding the racial inequalities that exist on college campuses across the country. Students are protesting against hostile racial climates and demanding colleges to respond to racial discrimination. This campaign for improved racial dynamics comes at the same time that the Supreme Court is considering its latest case on affirmative action. Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin could potentially end race-conscious admissions and dramatically decrease the number of students of color admitted to public universities. Prominent opponents of affirmative action in higher education have focused on the supposed detriments to students of color who attend universities with race-conscious admissions policies. Allegedly, students of color will be stigmatized as “affirmative action admits” and “mismatched” by matriculating at a school where they are unprepared to succeed. Justice Scalia most recently articulated this view during oral arguments this term in Fisher:

[T]here are those who contend that it does not benefit African Americans to...get them into the University of Texas where they do not do well, as opposed to having them go to a less-advanced school, ...a slower-track school where they do well. One of...the briefs pointed out that...most of the...black scientists in this country don’t come from schools like the University of Texas. .... ...They come from lesser schools where they do not feel that they’re...being pushed ahead in...classes that are too...fast for them.

Affirmative action opponents contend that these costs are so serious that students of color benefit from bans on affirmative action, such as those recently upheld by the Supreme Court in Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action.

These arguments, however, ignore the significant harms associated with race-neutral environments. Such harms for students of color include racial isolation, stereotype threat, racial microaggressions, identity performance, and forced racial labor. Although these detriments arguably occur at almost all predominately white institutions, race-neutral environments greatly exacerbate these injuries because there are so few people of color on campus. These costs are not only intrinsic but also have economic consequences.

This Article is the first-ever cost-benefit analysis of affirmative action in higher education for students of color. It argues that the economic and intrinsic benefits of attending race-conscious universities greatly outweigh the costs for students of color.

Keywords: Affirmative Action, Critical Race Theory, Higher Education