Each year seniors stress over writing college essays and studying for the SATs.  Why? For the hope of 10 extra points? The reality is that tose factors are a small part in the process to give students a false sense of control over their college applications.

What seems to hold more weight than essays and SAT scores is the small box that each student must check, indicating their racial/ethnic identification.  According to the University of Michigan rating system, 12 points are awarded to a perfect SAT score, three to an outstanding essay, and 20 to a minority.  

The affirmative action debate is currently the focal point of heated controversy.  The University of Michigan is being tried by white applicants rejected for reverse discrimination, feeling black students are favored over white students in the process.

The essence of the case is whether or not the university has a quota system, which was banned by the 1978 Supreme Court ruling in Regents of California v. Bakke.  While quotes are forbidden, using race as a factor



Senior Jonique Johnson is “glad that affirmative action exists [because] the process has its good and bad points.”

 

As a Hispanic who will probably attend the University of Michigan next year, I disagree with using my mother’s birthplace as a factor in my admission.  Instead, I agree with President Bush that economic status would be a more appropriate factor to create diversity on campus.   Those students are at a disadvantage because they are not given the opportunity to attend better schools with access to more educational resources.

For this reason, the state of Florida proposed the “One Florida” plan.  This guarantees spots in the state university system for the top 20 percent of high school students in their graduating classes.  All top students, regardless of their racial background, are given a chance to attend selective state schools.   California and Texas have adopted similar programs, resulting in unbiased diversity due to applicants’ strong academic qualifications .

On the surface, this plan seems to be a good idea.  Several state universities have taken the initiative to recruit minorities.  This summer, I attended a program at the University of Florida geared toward attracting Hispanic students. We received “special” applications indicating our Hispanic scholar status and were told that 87% of us would be accepted.   The next week the same honors program was scheduled for African American students.  In reality, it was a way to get around affirmative action.

Mr. Thomas James, a social sciences teacher at Krop, said, “I think admissions should be based on test scores, GPA, and community service.  They should leave race out.”  

I agree. If “we are all created equal,” then a student’s ethnicity should not be a factor at all.