In New York State, some legislators, students, and advocates are calling for an end to the practice of giving preferential treatment to “legacy status” – where the relatives of alumni (such as parents or siblings) are prioritized in college admissions.
Supporters of the “Fair College Admissions Act” (S4170A) argue that the practice of elite schools considering alumni relatives in admissions favors white affluent families. This proposed legislation would prohibit New York State’s colleges and universities from continuing the long-standing practice of legacy preference in undergraduate admissions, with penalties for violators.
The sponsor of the bill, New York State Senator Andrew Gounardes, says that prioritizing alumni relatives through legacy admissions is a “form of affirmative action for students with immense privilege.” He points out that in institutions using legacy admissions, the acceptance rate for legacies can be up to four times higher than non-legacies, with 75% of legacies coming from the top 10% wealthiest families nationwide.
Last year, the US Supreme Court overturned affirmative action policies that barred considering race in college admissions. Advocates argue that ending legacy admissions is a pressing matter of “racial justice” in university admissions.
A report by the advocacy group “Education Reform Now” reveals that nearly 30% of colleges nationwide consider whether a student has family ties to the institution, a number that rises to over 40% in New York.
Campuses where legacy admissions have been prevalent have faced growing dissent. At Ivy League institution Cornell University, students have passed resolutions urging an end to the practice.
In May of this year, high school and college students from New York will travel to Albany to lobby lawmakers as part of Youth Advocacy Day.
Other states are also reconsidering these practices. Virginia legislators passed a law earlier this year prohibiting public universities from giving preferential treatment to alumni and donors’ relatives. Meanwhile, Colorado became the first state in the US to ban legacy admissions in 2021.
In New York and elsewhere, some institutions have voluntarily ceased considering students’ legacy status in admissions. Last year, New York University (NYU) removed a question from its application about whether the applicant was a child of an alum. The university clarified that legacy status plays no role in admissions decisions.