Young alumni put pressure on colleges to drop legacy admissions
I am firmly opposed to legacy admissions – the practice that legally allows colleges to favor alumni’s children in admissions decisions. Students should be admitted because they are the best candidates, not because their parents were part of an elite class or donated money. So many qualified students are rejected every year because those spots were given to children of alumni.
That’s why it’s exciting to see Leave Your Legacy, a group of 578 people who pledge not to give anything to colleges until they stop legacy admissions, stand up to this unfair practice. By working with alums from many colleges, Leave Your Legacy is beginning to bring attention to this injustice. They say that giving hereditary privilege is contrary to America’s commitment to the ideals of merit and equal opportunity. Legacy admits are overwhelmingly white and wealthy.
When parents go even further than just using their legacy status by bribing coaches, paying off SAT/ACT proctors, and paving the illegal path for their children to attend elite colleges, they send a tragic message directly to their children: They don’t believe their children will gain admission to college and the only way to get them in is to lie and cheat. The Varsity Blues scandal uncovered the ugly truth about the lackluster children who get into top colleges taking the precious spaces away from much-deserving, qualified students.
It’s encouraging to see alumni taking this bold step in changing the legacy admissions practice. I hope more alums send this message to admissions officers.