Sen. Gounardes to Chalkbeat: "Ending Legacy Admissions is About Fairness and Justice"

Some New York lawmakers, students, and advocates are calling for colleges in the state to end the practice of legacy admissions, which grants additional priority to the relatives of alumni.

Proponents of the “Fair College Admissions Act” say giving preference to students whose relatives attended an elite institution overwhelmingly favors white, wealthy families. The bill would prohibit the use of legacy admissions for undergraduates by colleges and universities in New York, while establishing financial penalties for those who refuse to comply with the law.

The push for the bill follows a U.S. Supreme Court decision last year that overturned affirmative action, significantly hindering the nation’s colleges and universities’ ability to consider race during admissions.

State Sen. Andrew Gounardes, a sponsor of the bill, called legacy admissions “a form of affirmative action for students of immense privilege.”

“At institutions that do use legacy, the admissions rate at some of the most exclusive schools is four times greater for legacy students versus non-legacy students,” he said. “And 75% of all legacy students come from the top 10% of wealthiest families in the country.”

Nationwide, nearly 30% of higher education institutions consider legacy status — with that figure rising to over 40% in New York, according to a report by the advocacy group Education Reform Now. And in 2022, a study found a growing number of adults believed legacy status should not play a factor in admissions, including more than 70% of both Democrats and Republicans.

At schools where legacy admissions have long been the norm, opposition has continued to surface on campuses. At Cornell University, students have passed multiple resolutions calling for the university to end the practice.

“It’s a fundamentally wrong and unfair practice,” said Claire Tempelman, a senior at Cornell who helped introduce a 2021 resolution urging the university to end legacy admissions. The Supreme Court’s decision on affirmative action last year only added to the urgency around the issue, Tempelman said.

“It’s ridiculous that even though you’re getting rid of affirmative action, you’re still keeping what is essentially affirmative action for the wealthy,” she added. “It’s this hypocrisy that makes legacy admissions just seem even more untenable.”

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