Latest news with #RichardKahlenberg
Bloomberg
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Liberals Should Focus on Class, Not Race
Race-based affirmative action no longer has a place in college admissions after the Supreme Court in 2023 eliminated what had been an attempt by universities to create multiracial campuses. In Class Matters: The Fight To Get Beyond Race Preferences, Reduce Inequality, and Build Real Diversity at America's Colleges, Richard D. Kahlenberg, a liberal who testified for the conservatives who brought those cases against Harvard University and the University of North Carolina, lays out his decades-long push for university admissions, and Democrats, to focus on class rather than race. Kahlenberg is director of the American Identity Project at the Progressive Policy Institute and teaches at George Washington University. This transcript has been edited and condensed. Nia-Malika Henderson: The Trump administration sees diversity, equity and inclusion as 'woke' so they're moving to strip DEI out of the federal government and elsewhere. What do you make of that?
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Watch Live — Charters at a Crossroads: Navigating Era of Legal Change for Public Education
As the U.S. Supreme Court justices consider the constitutionality of religious charters, could a favorable ruling reshape the charter landscape — or undermine their foundational principles? Join The 74 and the Progressive Policy Institute at 2 p.m. ET Thursday for a special conversation about the pivotal case. PPI's Curtis Valentine will lead a conversation with Richard Kahlenberg, Jason Zwara of the National Association of Charter School Authorizers and Eric Paisner of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools about the potential implications of the decision for charter school governance, state funding, church-state separation and educational equity. Sign up for the Zoom right here or tune in to this page Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET to stream the event. Recent school choice coverage from The 74:
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Will There Finally Be More Black Students At Harvard?
Earlythisweek, Harvard University announced that its elite education will soon be accessible to more families of humble financial backgrounds. As a mom who is increasingly worried about my son's access to the college education of his choosing post-affirmative action, I'm approaching this announcement with a lot of hope and a little disbelief of how we got here to begin with. Starting this fall, the private Ivy League institution, which totes a hefty price tag of around $57,000 a year (not including room and board), will waive tuition for families earning less than $200,000 a year. To go a step further for families with a household income of $100,000 or less annually, Harvard will cover nearly the entire college experience: housing, health insurance, transportation, event fees and a $2,000 startup grant. The wildest and most unexpected perk is the new winter gear, provided by the university, to keep them toasty during Cambridge, Massachusetts' brutal winters. In 2006, Harvard began covering the tuition for students of families making less than $60,000 yearly — and that number swelled to $85,000 in 2023, according to the Harvard Gazette. Making attendance more of a possibility for all accepted students is part of a movement by institutions to protect diversity on university campuses in light of the striking down of affirmative action and Trump's push to erase DEI efforts at institutions across the country. Just last fall, Harvard saw a decrease in enrollment of Black first-year students from 18% to 14%, which is believed to be linked to the 2023 Supreme Court decision to end affirmative action. Richard Kahlenberg, director of the American Identity Project at the Progressive Policy Institute, told The New York Times that more financial aid makes sense if colleges want to attract and retain a diverse body, 'since race and income are often intertwined.' This is an understatement that people in our current administration don't want to seem to acknowledge. Data shows that historically, typical white households possess more wealth than Black and Hispanic homes. And while we're seeing Black wealth increasing — with a third of Black households earning $75,000 or more a year — the nation's racial wealth gap continues to widen because of persisting biases. Experts at Duke point to the 'perpetually inequitable opportunities for Black Americans to accrue wealth' or the cyclical lack of wealth transfers from one generation to the next. And this makes sense, especially when we consider how often white and other non-Black families afford college tuition thanks to trust funds, college savings plans and other forms of wealth transferred through inheritance. Harvard is among a handful of prestigious universities that are attempting to make educational opportunities accessible to students with the grades and potential — and it'll be interesting to see how it plays out under the pressures of this presidential administration. Harvard plans to use its $53.2 billion endowment to fund this financial aid initiative. This matters not just because many of the philanthropic donations made to the school's endowment during its inception came from 'men whose fortunes derived from slavery in some form,' but also because Vice President JD Vance wants to massively increase taxes on large endowments (from 1.4% to 35%). This poses a threat not just to Harvard's new financial aid plans but to existing funding that has historically helped students from diverse backgrounds afford Ivy League degrees, something Vance is a direct beneficiary of. 'Ironic' doesn't begin to describe it. Harvard is not the only prestigious private institution offering free tuition to families earning less than $200,000. At the end of last year, the University of Pennsylvania and Massachusetts Institute of Technology also announced they would start covering tuition for families in the same income bracket. These moves shadow New York University's 2018 announcementto waive tuition for all incoming medical school students, which resulted in a 142% increase in applications from Black and Afro-Caribbean students. As the mother of a Black child, I continue to resist efforts that rob my child of opportunities he will rightfully deserve when he is of age. And watching institutions that we have historically been excluded from change the fabric of their admissions process makes me feel a little stronger in doing so.
Yahoo
17-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Harvard Expands Free Tuition Program to Families Making $200,000 or Less
Harvard University announced Monday it will offer free tuition to students from families earning up to $200,000 annually, a dramatic expansion from its previous $85,000 threshold. The Ivy League institution joins several elite schools making similar moves following last year's Supreme Court decision banning race-conscious new financial aid policy takes effect this fall, potentially making Harvard accessible to approximately 86 percent of U.S. families. Students from households earning under $100,000 will receive even more comprehensive support, with Harvard covering not just tuition but also housing, food, travel costs between campus and home, health insurance, and even winter clothing appropriate for Massachusetts winters."Putting Harvard within financial reach for more individuals widens the array of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives that all of our students encounter, fostering their intellectual and personal growth," Harvard President Alan M. Garber said in the expanded aid program comes at a challenging time for elite universities. As The New York Times reports, Harvard recently announced a hiring freeze amid White House threats of funding cuts and tax increases. The annual cost of attending Harvard, including tuition and housing, approached $83,000 this academic students from the lowest income brackets, Harvard will provide additional financial support, including a $2,000 "start-up" grant to help with initial expenses. The university spent $275 million on financial aid this year, with just over half of undergraduates receiving some form of isn't alone in expanding financial aid. The University of Pennsylvania, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Caltech, Dartmouth, University of Virginia, and the University of North Carolina have all increased their financial aid limits over the past moves come after the Supreme Court's affirmative action ban led to declines in Black student enrollment at many schools, including Harvard, where the proportion of Black first-year students dropped from 18 percent to 14 percent last experts view the financial aid expansions as an alternative approach to maintaining campus diversity. Richard Kahlenberg, director of the American Identity Project at the Progressive Policy Institute, noted that income and race are often intertwined."Now that universities can no longer employ racial preferences if they want racial diversity, the best path forward is to boost the chances of admissions of nonwealthy and working-class students, a disproportionate share of whom are Black and Hispanic," Kahlenberg expanded financial aid program represents a significant investment in accessibility at a time when higher education faces mounting political and financial pressures, including potential increases to endowment taxes and caps on research grant reimbursements being pursued by the current administration.
Chicago Tribune
17-03-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Harvard will make tuition free for more students
Harvard University announced Monday that it plans to offer free tuition for students whose families earn $200,000 and below, making it the latest elite school to expand financial aid after the Supreme Court banned the use of racial preferences in college admissions. The plan with the new income cap will take effect starting this fall. Previously at Harvard, only families with incomes under $85,000 were offered free tuition. The median household income in the United States is about $80,000. In addition to boosting diversity, the move could serve to improve the school's image as higher education is under assault by the Trump administration and growing unpopular with Americans who have lost confidence in education. The University of Pennsylvania announced in November that it would offer free tuition for students from families making under $200,000. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology also announced a $200,000 cutoff then, similar to a plan offered by the California Institute of Technology. Other universities have also increased their financial aid limits in the past year, including Dartmouth, the University of Virginia and the University of North Carolina. The Supreme Court decision banning affirmative action led to declines in the number of Black and Hispanic students at many schools, including Harvard. In the fall, the proportion of Black first-year students enrolled at Harvard declined to 14% from 18% the previous year, while Hispanic students' enrollment increased slightly. The ruling has posed a dilemma for schools that have argued that diversity is important, but are now under intense scrutiny from the Trump administration, which is seeking to eliminate diversity efforts. Richard Kahlenberg, director of the American Identity Project at the Progressive Policy Institute, said that improving financial aid packages makes sense for colleges that are looking to attract more Black and Hispanic students, since race and income are often intertwined. 'Now that universities can no longer employ racial preferences, if they want racial diversity, the best path forward is to boost the chances of admissions of nonwealthy and working-class students, a disproportionate share of whom are Black and Hispanic,' Kahlenberg said in an email. 'To get such students to apply, and then to enroll, requires generous financial aid.' In making the financial aid announcement, Alan M. Garber, Harvard's president, mentioned neither the Supreme Court decision nor the White House's ongoing assault on elite universities, which has resulted in dramatic funding cuts at many schools that receive federal dollars. But he referred to the value of bringing a cross-section of people together. 'Putting Harvard within financial reach for more individuals widens the array of backgrounds, experiences and perspectives that all of our students encounter, fostering their intellectual and personal growth,' Garber said in the announcement. 'By bringing people of outstanding promise together to learn with and from one another, we truly realize the tremendous potential of the university.' The annual cost of attending Harvard, including tuition and housing, was almost $83,000 this school year. In addition to offering free tuition to students with family incomes up to $200,000, Harvard said that students from families that make under $100,000 will pay for practically nothing. For those students, Harvard will cover tuition, fees, food, housing, travel costs between campus and home, event fees and activities, and health insurance, if needed. The university will also pay for 'winter gear' to help students brace against harsh winters on Harvard's Cambridge, Massachusetts, campus, along with a $2,000 'startup' grant. Harvard's announcement said that in addition to tuition, students from families making up to $200,000 could be eligible for extra financial aid, depending on their circumstances. The university also said some students from families making more than $200,000 could be eligible for some forms of financial aid, depending on their family's situation. Harvard said it spent $275 million on financial aid this year, but did not have an estimate of how much its new plan will cost. Just over half of Harvard's undergraduates received financial aid, the school said. The push to expand financial aid as schools compete for students comes at a precarious time in higher education. Harvard's announcement comes within days of the school saying that it would freeze hiring to gird against White House threats of funding cuts and tax increases. Major cuts in international health and agricultural programs funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development have led to hundreds of layoffs at universities around the country, most notably Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Wealthy universities are also wary of various proposals by congressional Republicans to increase the endowment tax on Harvard and other schools. Some have said that could hurt their efforts to offer financial aid. Currently, the annual investment income earned by the endowment is taxed at 1.4%. Vice President JD Vance has proposed raising it to as much as 35%. (Vance himself received a generous financial aid package to attend Yale Law School.) The Trump administration also moved to cap overhead reimbursements on National Institutes of Health grants to 15%, which could cut hundreds of millions of dollars that schools have come to rely on to cover facilities and staff. That proposal is being challenged in courts. The overhead rates normally vary depending on the grant recipients, but in some cases, they provide up to 60% of the grant in additional reimbursements.
