From today’s Chronicle of Higher Education online:

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Bucking a nationwide trend in higher education, the president of Texas A&M University at College Station said on Wednesday that he does not want to use race as a factor in determining undergraduate admissions or financial-aid awards.

That approach, which the university’s Board of Regents is expected to approve today, runs counter to plans at other universities in the state that are gearing up to consider race once again now that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that affirmative action can be used in admissions. …

“Students at Texas A&M should be admitted as individuals, on personal merit, and on no other basis,” Robert M. Gates, the university’s president, said in a statement.

Instead of using race, the university will base its admissions decisions on the academic merit, personal achievement, and leadership potential of each applicant. The university will redouble its efforts to admit and enroll more minority students, he said, but will not establish any numerical goals.

Mr. Gates also proposed two changes to the university’s admissions requirements. Under his plan, high-school students would have to graduate in the top quarter of their class, rather than the top half, to gain automatic admission to the university.

In addition, he said he wanted students to answer two essay questions on the common application for public four-year colleges in Texas. Applicants currently can pick one of four questions. The mandatory essays would include what hardships the students had overcome and what they would contribute to the university.
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I fully expect that this will not last, even with the essays. Expect a firestorm in College Station.