Restricted accessResearch articleFirst published online 1996-9
The Impact of the California Civil Rights Initiative (CCRI) on University and Professional School Admissions and the Implications for the California Economy
Using data from the University of California and results from previously published research on the returns to higher education, this article presents a preliminary evaluation of the impact of ending affirmative action in admissions at a large, publicly funded university. At the undergraduate level, eliminating race as a factor in the admissions process will redistribute African Americans, Mexican Americans, and Native Americans away from the most competitive campuses (UC-Berkeley, UCLA, UC-San Diego) towards the less competitive campuses in the California State University system. This redistribution will lower the returns to schooling for those affected groups and could have a negative impact on the educational environment for all students. Affirmative action will, in the short run, reduce the number of African American, Mexican American, and Native American students admitted and, in the long run, will have an adverse effect on the delivery of legal and health care services to those racial and ethnic groups.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Association of American Medical Colleges, 1996. “Minorities Underrepresented in Medicine Are Consistently More Likely to Work in Underserved Areas,” AAMC Press Release, Washington, D.C., May 22.
2.
Association of American Medical Colleges, Minority Students in Medical Education: Facts and Figures IX.Washington, D.C.: Association of American Medical Colleges.
3.
AstinAlexander, 1977. Four Critical Years: Effects of College on Beliefs, Attitudes and Knowledge.San Francisco: Josey-Bass.
4.
AstinAlexander, 1982. Minorities in Higher Education.San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
5.
AstinAlexander W., 1993a. What Matters in College? Four Critical Years Revisited.San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
6.
CarterDeborah J., and WilsonReginald, 1993. Minorities in Higher Education 1992 Eleventh Annual Status Report.Washington, D.C.: American Council on Education.
7.
ChavezLinda, 1995. Testimony Before the Assembly Committee on the Judiciary, California State Legislature, Sacramento, May 4.
8.
CoatesStephen, and LouryGlenn, 1993. “Will Affirmative-Action Policies Eliminate Negative Stereotypes?” American Economic Review83: 4.
9.
CookEllen, 1995. “Race and UC Medical School Admissions: A Study of Applicants and Admission in the UC Medical Schools.” Testimony to Assembly Judiciary Committee, California State Legislature, May 4.
CoxBarbara, (ed.) 1993. Resolving a Crisis in Education: Latino Teachers for Tomorrow's Classrooms.Claremont, California: The Tomas Rivera Center.
12.
CraneJonathan, 1991. “The Epidemic Effect of Ghettos and Neighborhood Effects on Dropping Out and Teenage Childbearing,” American Journal of Sociology96 (March): 1226–1259.
13.
Datcher-LouryLinda and GarmanDavid, 1995. “College Selectivity and Earnings,” Journal of Labor Economics13 (2): 289–308.
14.
DatcherLinda, 1982. “Effects of Community and Family Background on Achievement,” The Review of Economics and Statistics64: 1 (February): 32–41.
15.
DeppeMarilyn J., 1989. “The Impact of Racial Diversity and Involvement on College Students’ Social Concern Values.” Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for the Study of Higher Education, Atlanta, November 2-5.
16.
DrakeMichael, 1994. “Remarks to the Board of Regents.” Presentation to the University of California Board of Regents, November 17.
17.
FosterDean P., and VohraRakesh V., 1992. “An Economic Argument for Affirmative Action,” Rationality and Society4 (2): 176–188.
18.
GalanterMarc, 1992. “The Structure and Operation of an Affirmative Action Programme: An Outline of Choices and Problems.” In Affirmative Action in a New South Africa: The Apartheid Legacy and Comparative International Experiences and Mechanisms of Enforcement.Cape Town, South Africa: The Centre for Development Studies, University of Western Cape, May.
19.
GarciaLuis T., ErskineNancy, HawnKathy and CasmaySusanne R., 1981. “The Effect of Affirmative Action on Attributions about Minority Group Members,” Journal of Personality49 (December): 427–437.
20.
LeeHansen W. and WeisbrodBurton A., 1969. Benefits, Costs, and Finance of Public Higher Education.Chicago: Markham Publishing Company.
21.
HearnJames C, 1984. “The Relative Roles of Academic, Ascribed and Socioeconomic Characteristics in College Destinations,” Sociology of Education57 (January): 22–30.
22.
HearnJames C, 1991. “Academic and Nonacademic Influences on the College Destinations of 1980 High School Graduates,” Sociology of Education64 (July): 158–171.
23.
HeilmanMadeline E., BlockCaryn, and LucasJonathan, 1992. “Presumed Incompetent? Stigmatization and Affirmative Action Efforts,” The Journal of Applied Psychology77: 536–544.
24.
HoffmanSaul D., 1984. “Black-White Differences in the Returns to Higher Education: Evidence from the 1970s,” Economics of Education Review3 (1): 13–21.
25.
HoganDennis P. and KitagawaEvelyn M., 1985. “The Impact of Social Status, Family Structure, and Neighborhood on the Fertility of Black Adolescents,” American Journal of Sociology90 (4): 825–855.
26.
JamesEstelle, 1989. “College Quality and Future Earnings: Where Should You Send Your Child to College?” American Economic Review (May): 247–252.
27.
JaynesGerald (ed.) 1989. A Common Destiny: Blacks and American Society.Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.
28.
JustizManuel, 1994. “Demographic Trends and the Challenges to American Higher Education.” In Minorities in Higher Education, ed. JustizManuel J., WilsonReginald, and BjorkLars G.Phoenix: The American Council on Education.
29.
KayHerma Hill, 1995. “Presentation to Regents on Law School Admissions.” Presentation to the University of California Board of Regents, May 18.
30.
KomaromyMiriam, 1996. “The Role of Black and Hispanic Physicians in Providing Health Care for Underserved Populations” The New England Journal of Medicine334(20): 1305–1310.
31.
Law School Admission Council, Data Services Group, n.d. “Top ABA Applicant Feeder Schools.” Unpublished tables.
32.
Law School Admission Council, Data Services Group, n.d. “Distribution of Ethnic Origin for All Applicants.” Unpublished tables.
33.
LouryGlenn, 1977. “A Dynamic Theory of Racial Income Differences.” In Women Minorities and Employment Discrimination, ed. WallacePhyllis A.Lexington, Ma: Lexington Books.
34.
MorrisonGarry, 1994. Letter to Regent Clair W. Burgener, dated July 12.
35.
NakanishiDon T., 1989. “A Quota on Excellence? The Asian American Admissions Debate” Change (November/December): 39–47.
36.
NickensHerbert W, 1996. Telephone interview with Rhonda Sharpe, Mechanicsville, Virginia, July 23.
37.
NickensHerbert W. and CohenJordan J., 1996. “Policy Perspectives: On Affirmative Action,” JAMA275: 7 (February 21): 572–574.
38.
OkoOkechukwu, 1926. “Laboring in the Vineyards of Equality: Promoting Diversity in Legal Education through Affirmative Action,” Southern University Law Review23 (S.U.L. Rev. 189, Winter). LEXIS document.
39.
O'NeillJune, 1990. “The Role of Human Capital in Earnings Differences between Black and White Men,” The Journal of Economic Perspectives4 (4) (Fall): 25–46.
40.
OwingsJeffrey and McMillenMarilyn and BurkettJohn, 1995. “Statistical Brief: Making the Cut: Who Meets Highly Selective Entrance Criteria?” National Center for Educational Statistics, April, NCES 95-732.
41.
PascarellaErnest T., SmartJohn C., StoeckerJudith, 1989. “College Race and the Early Status Attainment of Black Students,” Journal of Higher Education60 (January/February): 82–107.
42.
PascarellaErnest T. and TerenziniPatrick T, 1991. How College Affects Students: Findings and Insights from Twenty Years of Research, pp. 506–508. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
43.
PennNolan, 1986. “Affirmative Action at Work: A Survey of Graduates of the University of California, San Diego, Medical School,” American Journal of Public Health76: 9.
44.
PickensWilliam H., 1989. “California Perspectives Three Viewpoints Higher Education and Society's Needs,” Change (September/October): 43–51.
45.
ReimersCordelia, 1985. “A Comparative Analysis of the Wages of Hispanics, Blacks, and Non-Hispanic Whites.” In Hispanics in the U.S. Economy, ed. BorjasG. and TiendaM.New York: Academic Press.
46.
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, 438 U.S. 314 (1978).
47.
RouseCecilia E., 1994. “What to Do after High School: The Two-Year versus Four-Year College Enrollment Decision.” In Choices and Consequences: Contemporary Policy Issues in Education, ed. EhrenbergRonald G.Ithaca: Industrial Labor Relations Press.
48.
SantosRichard, 1986. “Hispanic High School Graduates: Making Choices.” In Latino College Students, ed. OlivasMichael A.New York: Teachers College Press.
49.
SchoenfeldJane, 1996. “Learning to Live in a Diverse World,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 18, FIVE STAR LIFT edition, NEXIS.
50.
SwainCarol M., 1995. “A Cost Too High To Bear,” The New Democrat7: 3 (May/June): 19.
51.
ThomasGail E., 1984. “Black College Students and Factors Influencing Their Major Field Choice,” unpublished Report, as cited in PascarellaErnest T. and TerenziniPatrick T, 1991, How College Affects Students: Findings and Insights from Twenty Years of Research.San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
52.
United States Government, Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 1996a. 1988-1994, Descriptive Summary Report. NCES No. 96-175. INTERNET. www.ed.gov/NCES/pubs/96175.html
53.
United States Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 1996b. “Dropout Rates in the United States, 1994,” NCES No. 96-845. INTERNET. www.ed.gov/NCES/pubs/r94.
54.
University of California, 1994. “Pertinent Questions and Answers Regarding UC Medical Admissions,” November 15.
55.
University of California, 1995. Report of the Task Force on Undergraduate Admissions Criteria, December.
56.
University of California, Berkeley, Institute for the Study of Social Change, 1991. The Diversity Project: Final Report, Berkeley, University of California, November.
57.
University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, 1996a. “Faculty Policy Governing Admission to Boalt Hall,” April 22.
58.
University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, 1996b. “Boalt Hall Admission Procedures,” April 22.
59.
University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, 1996c. “Boalt Hall Supplemental Admission Criteria,” April 22.
60.
University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, 1993. “Admissions Policy Statement and Task Force Report,” August 31.
61.
University of California, Davis, School of Law, 1996. “University of California Davis, Admissions Procedures and Criteria,” June.
62.
University of California, Davis, School of Law, 1992. “University of California Davis, Admissions Procedures and Criteria,” May.
63.
University of California, Irvine, College of Medicine, 1996. “Ethnicity Profile,” unpublished tables dated August 9.
64.
University of California, Los Angeles, n.d. “Affirmative Action and Freshman Admission to the College of Letters and Science.”
65.
University of California, Office of the President, 1996a. Unpublished survey of University Programs potentially affected by ballot initiatives related to affirmative action, transmitted to Ms. Elizabeth Hill, Legislative Analyst, in letter dated May 6.
66.
University of California, Office of the President, 1995a. “The Use of Socio-Economic Status in Place of Ethnicity in Undergraduate Admissions: A Report on the Results of an Exploratory Computer Simulation,” Occasional Paper 5, May.
67.
University of California, Office of the President, 1991. “University-wide Survey of Fall 1990 Non-Matriculants,” April.
68.
University of California, Office of the President, 1996b, “Enrollment Data: UC Medical and Law Schools,” unpublished tables, July.
69.
University of California, Office of the President, 1995b. “Affirmative Action and Graduate and Professional School Admissions,” September.
70.
University of California San Diego, 1996. “Proposed Revisions to the Undergraduate Admission Criteria from the Committee on Admission in Response to the Regents Resolution SP-1,” April 29.
71.
University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine, 1996. “Entering Class,” unpublished tables dated August 22.
72.
WalesTerence, 1972. “The Effect of College Quality on Earnings: Results from the NBER-THORNDIKE DATA,” Journal of Human Resources8 (3): 306–317.
73.
WilsonReginald1989. “The State of Higher Education: Crisis and Promise.” In The State of Black America 1989. Washington, D.C.: National Urban League, Inc.
