Investigation Initiated by Education Department into Harvard’s Legacy Admissions

The U.S. Department of Education has commenced a civil rights investigation into Harvard University’s legacy admissions practices, marking a fresh chapter in legal disputes surrounding college admissions.

The department is inspecting Harvard’s practice of favoring children of alumni—often white—in admissions, a practice that has recently come under increasing scrutiny. This follows last month’s Supreme Court decision to prohibit the use of affirmative action to increase representation of students of color.

Boston-based nonprofit organization, Lawyers for Civil Rights, was informed by the department on Monday of their investigation into allegations that Harvard’s legacy and donor preferences in its undergraduate admissions process discriminate on the basis of race.

A spokesperson for the Education Department verified that its Office for Civil Rights had initiated an investigation into Harvard, but refrained from further comment.

The complaint was filed earlier this month representing Black and Latino community groups from New England. The group alleges that legacy-linked students are seven times more likely to gain admission to Harvard, can constitute almost one third of a class, and around 70% of them are white. It was reported that for the Class of 2019, approximately 28% of students were legacies with a relative who had attended Harvard.

The group stated that this practice is detrimental to “qualified and highly deserving applicants of color” as admission spots are allocated to predominantly white legacy applicants. They further contended that these preferences are not merit-based but instead are unfair benefits conferred solely due to family connections.

A Harvard spokesperson stated on Tuesday that in light of the Supreme Court’s decision on affirmative action, the university is reassessing its admission practices to ensure legality.

“While this review is ongoing, Harvard is committed to broadening opportunities and encouraging students from diverse backgrounds to apply,” the spokesperson said.

Jane Sujen Bock, a board member of the Coalition for a Diverse Harvard, suggested that eliminating legacy preferences could be one way to promote diversity and equity in admissions, among other strategies.

Last week, Wesleyan University in Connecticut decided to stop preferential treatment in admissions for legacy students. Other schools, including Amherst College, Carnegie Melon University, and Johns Hopkins University, have also discarded legacy admissions.

These changes in policy come in response to last month’s Supreme Court ruling against affirmative action and racial considerations in college admissions. This decision, made by the court’s conservative majority, overturned precedents set over 45 years, compelling educational institutions to find alternative methods to achieve student diversity.

Derrick Johnson, NAACP President and CEO, praised the Education Department’s efforts to make higher education accessible to all, not just the privileged few.

“A student’s talents and qualifications should be the only factors determining their college of choice. Affirmative Action was designed to reinforce this notion, while legacy admissions undermines it,” he argued.

A recent study conducted by Harvard and Brown researchers revealed that wealthy students are twice as likely to gain admission into elite colleges as their less affluent peers with similar standardized test scores. The study, examining family income and admissions data from Ivy League schools, Stanford, MIT, Duke, and the University of Chicago, identified legacy admissions, athletic recruitment, and extracurricular credentials as key factors that benefit high-income students.

Reporting for Big Big News were Annie Ma and Gary Fields from Washington, D.C.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Harvard Legacy Admissions Investigation

More about Harvard Legacy Admissions Investigation

• Harvard University Official Website
• U.S. Department of Education Official Website
• Supreme Court Affirmative Action Ruling
• Lawyers for Civil Rights
• Study on Wealthy Students’ Admission to Elite Colleges