In the near future, I will be introducing legislation that would ban the use of legacy admissions at all Pennsylvania public and private colleges and universities.
In the recent Supreme Court decision, Students For Fair Admissions, Inc. V. President And Fellows Of Harvard College, 600 U.S. ____(2023) the highest court in the land struck down affirmative action in admissions at both public and private colleges and universities. Justice Roberts stated in the Majority Opinion that, “Eliminating racial discrimination means eliminating all of it.” And the Equal Protection Clause, we have accordingly held, applies “without regard to any differences of race, of color, or of nationality”—it is “universal in [its]application.
However, while striking down affirmative action in admissions, the Supreme Court failed to outlaw meritless based “legacy admissions,” which is the practice of favoring applicants with family ties to alumni. Banning legacy admissions would be consistent with the Supreme Court’s ruling which focuses on merit-based admissions rather than admissions based on preference.
For the reasons stated above, I propose legislation that would ban legacy admissions at Pennsylvania’s public and private colleges and universities. My legislation would ensure that merit-based admissions is the standard and that preference is removed as a consideration in the college and university admission process. There is no justification for continuing the practice of legacy admissions into the future.
In banning legacy admissions at its public and private colleges and universities, Pennsylvania would be joining, Colorado which banned legacy admissions at public universities in 2021, and other states like in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New York which have introduced similar bills. Now is the time to put an end to legacy admissions in Pennsylvania and to inject fairness into the process.
Please join me as a co-sponsor of this important piece of legislation.
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