Education Department to Collect Admissions Data for Transparency
Disclaimer: This article discusses policy changes in higher education and does not constitute legal advice. Consult with a qualified professional for personalized guidance.
Following President Trump’s memorandum ensuring transparency in higher education admissions,U.S. Secretary of education Linda McMahon has directed the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) to collect admissions data from institutions of higher education. This directive aims to allow Americans to verify that race-based preferences are not being utilized in university admissions processes.
As part of their standard data reporting, colleges and universities will now be required to submit data broken down by race and sex. This data will cover the applicant pool, admitted students, and enrolled students at the undergraduate level, as well as for specific graduate and professional programs. The information will include quantitative measures of academic achievement,such as standardized test scores,Grade Point Averages (GPAs),and other applicant characteristics.
Secretary McMahon has also instructed NCES to establish a thorough audit process to guarantee the accuracy and consistent reporting of data across all institutions.”Following the revelations of rampant racial preferencing in college admissions exposed by Students for Fair Admissions v.Harvard, the Trump Management is now standardizing reporting from colleges and universities to provide full transparency into their admissions practices,” said U.S.secretary of Education Linda McMahon. “it should not take years of legal proceedings, and millions of dollars in litigation fees, to elicit data from taxpayer-funded institutions that identifies whether they are discriminating against hard working American applicants. Going forward, universities will be required to provide this data directly to us through an existing data system.”
McMahon further stated, “We will not allow institutions to blight the dreams of students by presuming that their skin color matters more than their hard work and accomplishments. The Trump Administration will ensure that meritocracy and excellence once again characterize American higher education.”
Background
In Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (2023), the Supreme Court persistent that racial preferencing in college and university admissions violates Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. the case brought to light significant racial preferences within Harvard University’s admissions process.
NCES is responsible for gathering and publishing a wide range of data from American educational institutions. It manages the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data system (IPEDS), which collects admissions, enrollment, and financial information from colleges and universities participating in financial assistance programs. Institutions receiving funding through Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 agree to complete all IPEDS surveys accurately and promptly as a condition of receiving federal student aid.
Previously,IPEDS surveys only requested the racial breakdown of enrolled students,but now will require more detailed data.
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