Daily Lumina News 071323

It matters how we talk about higher education, writes Lumina Foundation's Jamie Merisotis in this perspective. Big-data research on media narratives shows that positive stories about higher education frequently go unheard, and damaging narratives have moved from fringe media to the mainstream.
The bottom line: It's time for higher ed to do a better job telling its own story. That’s how we can restore confidence in higher education—and offer hope for our future.

Admissions preferences for legacy applicants and the children of donors have been unpopular for years. The practice was known, and has been the subject of, many articles and messy scandals.
Now, following last month's decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to ban race-conscious admissions, the pressure on colleges to stop giving the children of their alumni and biggest donors a leg up in admissions decisions is picking up.

While the extent of the U.S. Supreme Court’s affirmative decision will become clear only over time, even a cursory look at the data around educational attainment shows two very important points hold true.
First, sharp racial and ethnic divides remain around who has bachelor’s degree in the United States. And second, those differences have very real socioeconomic impacts in broader American society.

Youlanda Copeland-Morgan is a former vice provost for enrollment management at the University of California, Los Angeles. She reshaped UCLA’s outreach, recruitment, and enrollment strategies after the state banned race-conscious admissions in 1996 under Proposition 209.
In this interview, Copeland-Morgan explains what may be in store for the rest of the country—and the strategies that could help.

Even before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against affirmative action in higher education, lawmakers in some states were trying to dismantle diversity, equity, and inclusion programs on college campuses.
Reporter Adrienne Lu offers insight on various state anti-DEI legislation and how colleges are retooling their DEI work in response.

The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling on affirmative action removes race from consideration in the college admissions process. How will this decision affect students applying to colleges and universities? What will be the impact on growing a more diverse student body on college campuses?
A university president and a political historian discuss how the change in affirmative action will affect the future of higher education.