Photo: Getty Images
The state of California has banned legacy admissions, making it illegal for universities to consider an applicant's relation to alumni or donors when deciding whether to admit them.
On Monday (September 30), Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a ban against legacy admissions for public and private universities in California into law, which will take effect on September 1, 2025, per Politico.
The new California law is the nation's second legacy admissions ban that applies to private colleges.
“In California, everyone should be able to get ahead through merit, skill, and hard work,” Newsom said in a statement. “The California Dream shouldn’t be accessible to just a lucky few, which is why we’re opening the door to higher education wide enough for everyone, fairly.”
Violators of the law won't be penalized, but their names will be shared on the state Department of Justice's website. The new law will affect prestigious universities including Stanford University and the University of Southern California.
“We have major private universities who use a significant portion of their admissions pool to help legacy and donors get admitted,” Assemblymember Phil Ting, a San Francisco Democrat who carried the legislation, said in a statement. “We really need to make their admissions policies much more equitable.”
According to self-reported numbers, over 14 percent of the students admitted to USC in 2022 had legacy or donor ties. Stanford University admitted 13.8 percent, and Santa Clara admitted 13.1 percent.
Public universities in California won't be affected by the new law. California State University doesn't consider legacy or donor ties, and the University of California stopped consideration in 1998.
The Black Information Network is your source for Black News! Get the latest news 24/7 on The Black Information Network. Listen now on the iHeartRadio app or click HERE to tune in live.