Colleges and universities are trying to figure out what's next after last week's 6-3 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court striking down affirmative action in higher education.

Affirmative action's implementation gave minorities a slight advantage through their race to be accepted into certain colleges and universities. It was approved one year after the Civil Rights Act of 1964, but public opinion has been mixed in the decades since. Some polls find Americans of different races aren't as much in favor of the policy as they once were. Others show a large majority wanted it to remain intact.

Rosemary Rivera, executive director of the group Citizen Action of New York, described what affirmative action was seen as for some.

"I don't think it was like an aim for people to use affirmative action, it was just an insurance," Rivera explained. "It's almost like a security blanket, like, 'Yup, I am going to be seen, and I need to be seen because I have to struggle harder,' and our education systems are lacking in many ways."

From here, she wants to see people organize rallies in the hope of getting state elected officials to ensure some semblance of affirmative action remains intact.

A legal complaint was filed by activists against Harvard University. The complaint argues legacy admissions should end given they helped an overwhelming majority of wealthy white students gain admission to the school, which a 2019 study affirmed.

In the majority opinion, Chief Justice John Roberts found the admissions programs at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. While society has changed quite a bit since affirmative action was first enacted, racism hasn't.

Rivera argued in spite of progress, programs such as affirmative action are still necessary.

"Until racism is eradicated in our policies, institutional racism is eradicated, then yes, I'd still believe we are going to need policies that help Black, brown and low-income people actually thrive," Rivera asserted.

She noted ending affirmative action could invite a return to policies providing intentionally disparate impacts to minority students. Numerous states rescinded affirmative action policies prior to the ruling, and most of them saw large declines in Black, Latino and Indigenous students on college campuses.

Rivera pointed out misconceptions and misunderstandings about affirmative action have clouded opinions on it. One in particular is the idea affirmative action allowed minorities to take another person's spot at a college or university. Rather, she said it is about providing equitable access to higher education.

"We're trying to fight for an equitable world," Rivera explained. "Where students who have faced discrimination and whose parents and grandparents and ancestors faced discrimination are given the same opportunity and access to the education that has been historically denied."

She noted colleges and universities will have to take it upon themselves to ensure their campuses remain diverse, something many college students believe is beneficial to their education.

A 2022 BestColleges survey found more than half of students feel racial and ethnic diversity improves the learning environment and the social experience of campus life.

Support for this reporting was provided by Lumina Foundation.

New Mexico is taking a deep dive into its funding of public colleges and universities to determine if inequities need to be addressed. The Higher Education Sustainability Study will review and recommend changes to the formula used to fund higher ed.

Gerald Hoehne, director, Capital Outlay Division with the New Mexico Higher Education Department, said it will look at possible inequities among the full range of sectors - from colleges and universities to research institutions, independent community colleges and branch campuses.

"The differences between community colleges and research institutions - those differences have come into how they're funded. So, this study gives us an opportunity to look at that in more detail," he said.

Community colleges disproportionately serve low-income students and students of color, but New Mexico is among the majority of states where two-year institutions receive thousands of dollars less in education revenue per student enrolled than four-year institutions, according to a 2020 study by the Center for American Progress.

Hoehne expected study results to be available by mid-October ahead of the 2025 legislative session, so lawmakers have insight and can make changes they feel are needed. The Legislature earmarked $187 million for higher education in 2024 - more than double last year's investment and one of the largest investments in higher education in state history. Hoene said an initiative within the study will look at how New Mexico's funding compares to other states.

"To understand if there is different ways in which other states are addressing the different types of institutions and how we potentially may be able to incorporate any changes to our process to address those differences," he continued.

The National Center for Higher Education Management Systems is conducting the equity study on behalf of the state.

New York's 2025 budget creates universal access to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid program.

School districts statewide will have the resources to help high schoolers complete the application. Those who do not fill it out must sign a waiver stating they know of the available aid but are not pursuing it.

Sen. Andrew Gounardes, D-Sunset Park, the bill's sponsor, said FAFSA's required information can be daunting.

"Some students or some families are well-prepared and well-equipped to review that document and provide that information; some students might not be," Gounardes acknowledged. "Some students might not even know where to turn to get that information, especially if they're the first in their family to pursue college if they're the first generation here."

Some schools have moved closer to charging $100,000 a year for tuition, which Gounardes said can deter students from considering college. But through the FAFSA process, scholarships and grants can provide enough to shave the number down to a more reasonable figure. A Sallie Mae report showed college spending is up as families spend close to $28,000 each year on college.

Feedback for the proposal was positive, considering most high school seniors who complete the FAFSA are likely to go to college after graduation. Gounardes argued the state can build on the progress by reviewing admissions practices to ensure they are fair and do not exclude students from certain backgrounds.

"In particular, I think it's high time we end legacy admissions," Gounardes emphasized. "There's no reason why we should have affirmative action for privileged kids in New York state, especially from institutions that receive significant public dollars either for grants or construction or awards or this or that or whatever."

He introduced a bill ending legacy admissions, which is still in committee. Among public and private colleges in New York, 42% still consider legacy applicants for admissions.

More than 70% of adults with student loans report having delayed at least one significant life event because of their debt situation, yet a new Lumina Foundation-Gallup poll shows few Americans seem to understand the cost of obtaining a bachelor's degree.

During the 2021-22 academic year, the average cost of attendance ranged from $10,000 per year at public two-year institutions to more than $56,000 per year at private four-year nonprofit colleges.

Michele Scott Taylor, Ph.D - is president of College Now Greater Cleveland, a nonprofit that works to increase higher education accessibility.

She said for students who are potentially first-generation college goers or from lower socio-economic backgrounds, the conversations around college affordability can be overwhelming.

"The issue for that subset of the population is really around helping them understand what college costs, but then more importantly, how do I afford it?" said Taylor. "What are the ways in which that I could afford whatever that cost might be? "

The poll found that more than half of never-enrolled and previously enrolled adults say cost is a "very important" reason why they have not enrolled or re-enrolled in college.

Unenrolled adults across race, age and first-generation potential students consistently rate tuition cost as the most important factor in their decision to not pursue a college degree.

Taylor said more efforts should also go toward helping students persist and complete their degree, once they've signed up for those loans.

She said higher-education institutions could work better with college access organizations to communicate their programs and offerings in ways that are enticing to get students to want to enroll.

"We want them to show better their return on investment," said Taylor. "We want them to be a little bit more transparent about the cost and what the costs entail."

Data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center shows that in the 2022-2023 academic year, the number of undergraduate degree earners nationwide fell for the second year in a row.

Support for this reporting was provided by Lumina Foundation.




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