The Trump administration is requiring Texas Tech's med school to cease considering race in its admission process
The Trump administration just scored a victory in its fight against affirmative action.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center will no longer factor in an applicant's race when deciding on admittance to its medical school. Per The Washington Post, Texas Tech's decision is the result of pressure from the White House, which is seeking to "curtail" the use of affirmative action in education, and signals the approach that Education Secretary Betsy DeVos will likely take with other schools going forward.
Texas Tech reportedly agreed to the change in February, striking a deal with the U.S. Education Department after its Office for Civil Rights concluded a 14-year-old investigation into the university's use of affirmative action.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In July, the Education Department revoked a set of guidelines implemented under the administration of former President Barack Obama that explained how "schools could legally weigh race as one factor to achieve diversity," despite the fact that the Supreme Court has ruled on multiple occasions that universities could use affirmative action to increase on-campus diversity. But the Education Department pointed to a loophole in the most recent ruling in 2016, which stipulated that the schools must continually review their affirmative action policies. The Education Department argued that Texas Tech was not doing so, and, therefore, might not have been properly considering other factors, such as socioeconomic status, that could contribute to increased diversity.
The Education Department did not ask Texas Tech to conduct such a review before requiring the elimination of race from the admission process, however, per the Journal.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
One great cookbook: 'The Zuni Café Cookbook' by Judy Rodgers
The Week Recommends A tome that teaches you to both recreate recipes and think like a cook
By Scott Hocker, The Week US Published
-
Stephen Miller is '100% loyal' to Donald Trump
He is also the architect of Trump's mass-deportation plans
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Crossword: November 14, 2024
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published
-
Racist texts tell Black people in US to prepare for slavery
Speed Read Recipients in at least a dozen states have been told to prepare to 'pick cotton' on slave plantations
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Australia proposes social media ban before age 16
Speed Read Australia proposes social media ban before age 16
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
FTC bans fake online product reviews
Speed Read The agency will enforce fines of up to $51,744 per violation
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
States sue TikTok over children's mental health
Speed Read The lawsuit was filed by 13 states and Washington, D.C.
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Amazon ending 'Just Walk Out' grocery checkout
Speed Read In its place, the company will let customers scan while they shop with Amazon Dash Cart
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Justice Department bites Apple with iPhone suit
Speed Read The lawsuit alleges that the tech company monopolized the smartphone industry
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
House votes to force TikTok to sell or face US ban
speed read The House passed a bill to ban TikTok on national security grounds unless it sells to a non-Chinese company
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Apple kills its secret electric car project
Speed Read Many of the people from Project Titan are being reassigned to work on generative AI
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published