<p>howfarwevecome, a lot of people agree that lower-SES students have valuable perspectives to offer (and, also agree with the additional argument that they might “deserve” the benefit). Some of the schools villified for AA programs based on race have programs that also assist candidates based on income. U-M, for example, gave the same boost to poor kids as it did to underrepresented minorities under its old system. One problem U-M could be criticized for, however, is that unlike race, there was no box to check. Sometimes your fee waiver status, or your counselor’s report (if they chose to share the info), or your high school demographics, might tell U-M you were lower-income, but it wasn’t as straightforward. That’s problematic from a consistency standpoint, and an oversight in the whole admissions process IMO.</p>
<p>It’s true that having a different skin tone doesn’t automatically imbue a person with unique perspectives–or the ability to share them with classmates. That’s a issue. Nor can one claim that a wealthy URM “needs” the consideration, either. To some degree, colleges seem to not care. I’ve wondered about that myself. I’ve speculated on a couple of reasons. </p>
<p>Some of it may be a desire to have a critical mass, to raise the comfort level of other minority students so you can continue to recruit and retain those who do bring a unique perspective. </p>
<p>Some of it may be to help educate people like me. I entered college well-meaning but very naive and sheltered. I had very little experience with non-whites, not because i was a bigot but because there was no opportunity where I was from. I would argue that for someone like me, it was just important for me to meet and get to know rich minority kids as poor minority kids. I should see people from all races from across the spectrum of backgrounds. You can reinforce the wrong kinds of stereotypes if you’re mainly–or exclusvely–recruiting only the most “disadvantaged” minorities to your campus.</p>
<p>The third reason may be the belief that a visibly racially diverse environment forces students to think more broadly and differently, in ways that are good for their mental development–even if it’s just visual, that is, even if those students aren’t choosing to share their perspectives. </p>
<p>That is surely an incomplete list. it’s just my guesses.</p>
<p>Undergirding all of this is the fact that college-going minority students are in “short supply” from the perspective of colleges. That makes recruiting them competitive. They want them, they can’t get as many of them as they’d like, and that is what drives some of the behavior in terms of admissions, scholarships, and so on. It’s not necessarily a belief that these students deserve the help due to some kind of disadvantage inherent in being black/hispanic/native american. It’s supply and demand.</p>
<p>Wow this is long.</p>