California private colleges continue to oppose a revised bill that seeks information on legacy admissions. They contend that a threatened Cal Grant loss will hurt low-income students.
Lawmakers say they want to level the admissions playing field. Sweeping proposals would add oversight to athletics admissions, ban legacy admissions and regulate private counselors.
Some students wonder whether their college spots are taken by affluent cheaters. Most still believe hard work in high school will land them at a good college.
Leaders of youth-serving organizations in California and elsewhere said William Singer, who pleaded guilty to orchestrating an elaborate fraud to skirt admission standards at elite universities, falsely claimed to be partnering with them to help low-income children go to college.
While overall scores rose, only 48 percent of California students did well enough on the SAT to be considered fully college ready. Ethnic disparities remain as well.
The move to more leniency about transcript verification came in response to the controversial withdrawal of admission to nearly 300 incoming students at UC Irvine last spring. They were reinstated and the university apologized.
The new state budget requires CSU to develop by May new preferences for qualified applicants from the local regions around campuses. The action grows out of concerns that more CSU campuses and majors are becoming overcrowded and are turning away students.
The test’s content was dramatically changed last year to align much more closely with subject material taught in high school. Gaps among racial groups persist in California and nationally.
Statewide award recipient Lynda McGee was praised for her efforts to get low-income students into college. She says that some students should try to attend college away from home to have a better shot at finishing in four years.
The new policy would allow UC's nine undergraduate campuses to seek recommendation letters and other information from up to 15 percent of their freshman applicants. The change will be monitored to see if it hurts low-income and minority students.
