Conservative Voice

Author: Amber Hillman

Why is it that schools nationwide are admitting students with an eye on racial preference, even when it means turning a blind eye on academic standing? Isn't the objective of a highly selective colleges and universities, such as Middlebury College, to provide the best education possible to a select group of educated and intelligent students? While part of their goal is to educate students, the other part is to modify admission standards in the name of diversity and to accommodate those who may not be as well qualified as others -- even when it means denying the opportunity of a Middlebury education to a well-qualified majority student.
The pressure from the vocal minority has sent many colleges scrambling to diversify their student body. Most recently, a brief sent to the Supreme Court and signed by 28 colleges, including Middlebury, states, "highly selective colleges have a compelling educational interest in enrolling highly diverse -- including racially diverse -- classes."
Although there is no doubt that students learn from one another, this is not a fair reason to deny admission to a highly qualified majority applicant.
Doesn't anyone seem to notice this reverse discrimination? The new pressure society is putting on colleges to diversify their campuses -- to recreate a mixed mini-society -- is an idealistic attempt to create a heterogeneous society.
Yes, perhaps this could happen. But only if every student admitted to Middlebury was well qualified and intelligent enough to appreciate the College's educational opportunities.
At schools as selective and prestigious as Middlebury, it takes a lot of hard work, dedication and intelligence to excel, and this is precisely why admission standards are so high and why applicants must have an exceptional scholastic record and proof of a well-rounded character in order to matriculate here.
By admitting students who may not be as qualified, institutions like Middlebury, which has expressed support for continued affirmative action, do not ensure an enhanced college atmosphere.
If a large group of admitted students cannot handle the workload, the College must lower its educational standards to accommodate them.
Fortunately, we no longer live in the 1960s, and in today's world, race matters much less than it did in the past.
Perhaps, rather than dwelling on the supposed disadvantage faced by minorities -- perhaps if for just a moment we stopped giving them extra help -- we would see that they excel just as anyone else. Rather than having an idealized college campus perfectly formulated with members from every creed and color, we would have a college focused on furthering educational excellence, attended by intelligent students from a variety of backgrounds.
As Martin Luther King once said, "I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."
Weighing race into college admissions standards is a massive step away from this dream.
Saying that skin color must matter diminishes the chances for all to excel solely on character, heart and intelligence.