Harvard’s Legacies Are Nothing to Be Proud Of

[Oluwatoyin Vincent Adepoju]

https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-09-23/harvard-s-legacies-are-nothing-to-be-proud-of

[Mitchell Stolle]

This article esposes how nearly three quarters of Harvard’s students come from familial connections, or some sort of special programs. This has very negative implications too, because this means a less diverse student body and some people who come from a different demographic are getting less of a chance at acceptance. The author acknowledges that this is not entirely Harvard’s fault, but realizes the negative implications that come with those legacy acceptances.

[Katherine Serradell]

This article explains a recent study that shows that 43% of the white students admitted to Harvard are in the ALDC category. The ALDC category includes “recruited athletes, legacy admissions, applicants on the ‘dean’s interest’ list and children of Harvard faculty and staff”. Of the individuals in this category, three-quarters of them would have been rejected from Harvard had it not been for their ALDC status. Among African Americans, racial preferences were the dominant factor in why they got into Harvard; however, many of these students were not descendants of American slavery. It is for this reason that I believe that institutions and government systems should put a larger focus on fixing social inequities rather than just admitting people for ALDC status. It is evident that wealth and family connections go a long way in obtaining a good education, but if we ever want to fix this broken system, more effort needs to be put into fixing the inequities that have stemmed from the US’s terrible past. 

On Tuesday, September 24, 2019 at 1:59:14 AM UTC-5, Oluwatoyin Vincent Adepoju wrote:

https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-09-23/harvard-s-legacies-are-nothing-to-be-proud-of

[John Samuel Burleson]

Unfortunately, this article to not surprise me to say the least. With all the admissions scandals that came to surface last year, it seems as though many schools here in the U.S. should be under further investigation in regard to who they accept. In a perfect world, colleges would accept students solely based on their academic performance as well as their leadership that they could provide in the university. It is sad to see one of the highest ranked schools in the country, and a supposed example of an elite college in this country, can have such unethical standards. As far as the acceptance of African American students goes, I agree that Harvard is not to blame. Our country has done a terrible job of providing African American students with equal education. I hope in the coming years both our country, and our colleges hold themselves to a higher degree and fix the problems at hand.