(A) The current policy causes "academic mismatch" which hurts all students admitted under a substantial preference on race.
Professors teach to the medium level students in a class. Hence students who are ill prepared relative to their classmates are lost and frustrated. As a result, recent research finds that even highly talented students admitted through a race conscious admission policy often switching out from Science/Technology/Engineering/Mathematics (STEM) course. It has led to low graduation rates in these fields & in law for black & Hispanics students. [1]
Had these talented students attended colleges of their own level of preparation, they might have blossomed in their chosen STEM fields. Note that the damages don't stop at Ivies. After the Ivies have picked off the cream of the crop among the blacks and Hispanics, colleges in the next tier, eager to imitate the Ivies, also give substantial preference to what is left and cause the same problem.
IMPACT ON 80-20: It cleared the internal debate whether the heavy burden borne by us, shown in (B) below, is called for.
(B) Asian Am. applicants bear the heaviest burden of the race- conscious admission policy:
Princeton sociologist Thomas Espenshade performed rigorous analyses on the vast "National Study of College Experience" (NSCE) database and released the empirical findings in his 2009 book [2]: To receive equal consideration by elite colleges, Asian Americans must outperform Whites by 140 points, Hispanics by 280 points, Blacks by 450 points in SAT (Total 1600).
IMPACT ON 80-20: Outrage! Why are we, who have been historically on the receiving end of discriminations, to bear the heaviest burden for a college admission policy that doesn't work?
(C) Super majority support from our community -- 98%!
80-20 was created as a tool for our community to use to defend itself. Hence, before entering a HUGE & DIIFICULT battle, 80-20 sught the views of our community.
80-20 sponsored an OPEN, NEUTRAL survey for more than 30 days in which all participants had the FREEDOM TO CHOOSE between agreeing or disagreeing with 80-20's advocated position. The following was what we found:
o Total number of valid surveys: 50,277
o FOR/AGAINST radio of all survey participants: 48.6 to 1
o Valid surveys taken by Asian Ams (self-identiied): 47,107
o FOR/AGAINST radio of Asian Am. survey takers: 52.4 to 1.
o Valid surveys taken by non-Asian Ams (self-identified): 3,120
o FOR/AGAINST radio of non-Asian Am. survey participants: 23.0 to 1
IMPACT ON 80-20: 80-20 enters the battle.
Before ending the 1st of this 3-article-series, we like to APPEAL to the 4 Asian Am organizations which support the race-conscious college admission policy presuming to speak for the Asam community before the Supreme Court. Our community has spoken. Please join with us. Your current action is detrimental to the interest of the Asian Am community.
Post your comments, particularly regarding how to deal with those 4 Asian Am organizations taking the opposite stand. To post, click on http://www.80-20educationalfoundation.org/politicaledu/posterboard.asp
Should we simply leave them alone to the judgment of history? Thank you.
Sincerely,
S.B. Woo
President, 80-20 National Asian American Educational Foundation, Inc.
[1] "Encouraging Minority Students to Pursue Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Careers", US Commission on Civil Rights, Briefing Report, Oct 2010
http://www.elsblog.org/the_empirical_legal_studi/2006/09/ sander_2_black_.html
[2] "No Longer Separate, Not Yet Equal: Race and Class in Elite College Admission and Campus Life" by Thomas Espenshade (Princeton University Press, 2009)
