{"id":2164677,"date":"2024-02-01T06:54:01","date_gmt":"2024-02-01T11:54:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/virginia-a-youngkin-signature-away-from-barring-legacy-college-admissions\/"},"modified":"2024-02-01T06:59:30","modified_gmt":"2024-02-01T11:59:30","slug":"virginia-a-youngkin-signature-away-from-barring-legacy-college-admissions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/virginia-a-youngkin-signature-away-from-barring-legacy-college-admissions\/","title":{"rendered":"Virginia is on the verge of banning legacy college admissions with just one signature from Youngkin"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">32<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fvirginia-a-youngkin-signature-away-from-barring-legacy-college-admissions%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2164677&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>The Virginia General Assembly Takes\u200d Action to End Legacy Admissions<\/h2>\n<p>The Virginia General \u2064Assembly has passed groundbreaking legislation that aims\u2063 to level the playing field for college admissions. The bill, which is now awaiting Governor Glenn Youngkin&#8217;s \u200dsignature, would prohibit admissions offices from granting special treatment to children of alumni and donors when they \u2064apply to the state&#8217;s public universities.<\/p>\n<p>Sponsored \u200dby Democratic state Senator Schuyler VanValkenburg, the bill received\u200d overwhelming support in both the state Senate and House. VanValkenburg explained that the \u200bdiscussion \u200baround admission\u200b factors gained momentum\u200b after the\u200c U.S. Supreme Court&#8217;s ruling in June \u200b2023, which declared that considering race in admissions decisions is not permissible.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;I\u2063 think what folks\u2062 realized \u2014 including\u2062 myself\u2062 \u2014 was how big [of] a\u2062 piece legacy\u200c admission was to this\u2063 process,&#8221; VanValkenburg said. \u200d&#8221;And I think a lot of people realized how\u2063 wrong that was.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Some Virginia \u200cuniversities have already taken \u2063steps to reduce the influence of alumni and donors in admissions. For\u2064 instance, Virginia Tech announced in August that it \u2064would no longer give preferential treatment to children of alumni and discontinued the early decision option for applicants.<\/p>\n<p>A recent report by Education Reform Now revealed that most Virginia public universities provided some form of preferential treatment to legacy students during the study period. The University of Virginia, for example, allowed consideration of legacy status through an optional essay question. However, the university emphasized that no part of the application was \u200dranked or weighted based on legacy status.<\/p>\n<p>While Colorado is currently the only state to have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/virginia-a-youngkin-signature-away-from-barring-legacy-college-admisstions\/\" title=\"Virginia is one signature away from ending legacy college admissions\">passed legislation ending legacy preferential consideration<\/a>, other states like Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York are also considering similar measures.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;If there&#8217;s special privilege&#8230; that \u200bshouldn&#8217;t afford someone a cut in\u200c line because of the family&#8217;s donor status, or legacy \u2062status if\u200c your parents went\u2064 there,&#8221; said Democratic state Senator Jeremy McPike, who has also\u200c sponsored \u2063legislation similar to VanValkenburg&#8217;s and Helmer&#8217;s.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Democratic state Delegate Dan Helmer, who sponsored companion legislation in the state \u2062House, added, &#8220;The reality is that in too many colleges across America, we use legacy admissions in order to \u2063give folks a\u2062 leg up not because of\u200c what they&#8217;ve done, but because of who their \u200cparents are.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> What message does the legislation send \u2062about promoting\u2064 equality and social \u200bmobility in higher\u2062 education<\/h2>\n<p><span>  Hat the\u200b goal \u200dof the legislation is to promote equity in\u200c the higher education system and ensure \u2064that admissions decisions \u200dare based solely \u200bon merit.<\/p>\n<p>Legacy admissions, also known as &#8220;affirmative action\u2064 for the\u200d privileged,&#8221; have long been a controversial practice\u2063 in college \u200badmissions. Under this \u200csystem, children of alumni or donors are given preferential treatment in the admissions\u2064 process, often at the expense\u2064 of more qualified applicants.\u2062 This\u200c perpetuates inequality and social stratification, \u2062as it allows a select group of\u2063 individuals to \u2062enjoy \u200badvantages based\u200b solely\u2063 on their\u200d family background or financial contributions.<\/p>\n<p>While some argue that legacy admissions help foster a\u2062 sense of tradition\u2062 and loyalty within institutions, critics argue that \u200bit is \u200ca form of unfair privilege that undermines \u2064the principles of meritocracy and equal\u2064 opportunity.<\/p>\n<p>The\u200c new legislation in Virginia takes an important step\u2063 towards rectifying this issue. By\u2062 prohibiting the granting of special treatment to\u2064 legacy\u2063 applicants, it ensures that all \u2064applicants are evaluated on their individual merits, rather \u2064than their familial connections. This move will \u2063promote a fair and level playing field for all\u200d students applying to the state&#8217;s public universities.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, the legislation sends \u2063a strong message that Virginia is\u2063 committed to promoting equality and social \u200dmobility in higher education.\u200b By dismantling\u2062 the practice of legacy admissions,\u2062 the \u2064state is\u2062 taking a\u200b stand against the perpetuation of privilege and inequality. It\u200b recognizes \u200dthat access to higher \u2062education should be based on talent, potential, and hard work, rather \u200dthan birthright or\u200d financial contributions.<\/p>\n<p>The decision to end legacy admissions in Virginia \u200creflects broader societal \u200ctrends. In \u200crecent years, universities across the United States, including prestigious Ivy League institutions, have reevaluated their admissions policies and moved away from legacy preferences. This reflects a\u200c growing\u2064 recognition that the \u200dpractice\u2062 perpetuates inequality and\u200c runs\u200d counter\u200c to the \u200dideals of fairness and equal\u2064 opportunity.<\/p>\n<p>While some\u200b may argue that\u2063 ending legacy\u2063 admissions will harm fundraising efforts for universities, it is important to prioritize fairness and equal opportunity in higher education. Institutions must <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/facebook-and-instagram-launch-paid-ad-free-subscriptions-in-europe\/\" title=\"Facebook and Instagram introduce paid ad-free subscriptions in Europe.\">find \u200calternative ways<\/a> to engage \u2063with\u2063 their alumni and donors that do not perpetuate privilege\u200d or undermine the principles of meritocracy.<\/p>\n<p>The passing of this legislation in the Virginia General Assembly marks an \u200bimportant milestone in the fight for equity in college admissions. \u2063It sets a precedent for other states\u2063 to follow and sends \u200ba powerful message\u200c about the importance of a level playing \u200dfield in higher education.<\/p>\n<p>If Governor Glenn Youngkin signs the bill into law, it will be a significant \u2063victory \u200cfor fairness \u200band\u2063 equal opportunity. It will \u200dhelp create a more just and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-live-house-education-subcommittee-hearing-on-supreme-court-affirmative-action-decision\/\" title=\"LIVE NOW: House education subcommittee hearing on SCOTUS affirmative action ruling.\">inclusive higher education system<\/a>, where\u200d every student has an equal chance to succeed \u200dand thrive based\u2064 on \u200btheir abilities \u200cand achievements, rather than their \u200cfamily connections. The passage of this legislation\u2063 is an \u2062important\u2064 step towards \u2063realizing the\u2062 ideals \u200cof fairness and\u2064 meritocracy, and it is a testament to the power \u2063of legislative action \u2064in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nyc-could-create-a-reparations-task-force-and-tear-down-statues-of-george-washington-and-columbus\/\" title=\"NYC may establish a reparations task force and remove statues of George Washington and Columbus.\">addressing systemic inequalities<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Virginia General Assembly approved a bill prohibiting preferential treatment for alumni and donors&#8217; children in public university admissions. The legislation, sponsored by Democratic Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg, now awaits Gov. Glenn Youngkin&#8217;s signature. The bill passed the state Senate and has a companion bill in the House<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2648,"featured_media":2164678,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/AP24024766934648-scaled.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2164677","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/AP24024766934648-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2164677","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2648"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2164677"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2164677\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2164678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2164677"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2164677"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2164677"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}