As we reported
here earlier this week, a coalition of Asian-American organizations has asked the Department of Education to investigate the admissions policies at Brown University, Dartmouth College, and Yale University. The coalition says the policies discriminate against Asian-American applicants in violation of federal civil rights law and the Fourteenth Amendment.
Asian-American groups have made similar requests of Education, and been denied. It’s doubtful that this new request will fare any differently. Yet it is notable that so many Asian-American organizations—more than 130–have signed on to this request. There is a growing perception among Asian Americans that their rights are being compromised in the admissions offices of elite schools, like Brown, Dartmouth and Yale, and it is hardly crazy to think they may be right. Here the coalition points to research showing that, to gain admission to elite schools, Asian American applicants have to score on the SAT, on average, approximately 140 points higher than a white student, 270 points higher than an Hispanic applicant, and 450 points higher than a black student.
If the Education Department is not minded to investigate how Asian-Americans are faring in the admissions offices of Brown, Dartmouth, and Yale, that should not be the end of the story. Fortunately, there is a lawsuit that has been brought against Harvard College, alleging that Asian-Americans are treated much as Jews once were, subjected to quotas that limit admissions; this, notwithstanding their academic excellence. The case is in its early stages, but one to watch.
