Friday, May 15, 1998
Board considers admissions policy change
REGENTS: Proposed UC Merit Scholars Program to modify role of
SAT, honors units in eligibility
By Michelle Nguyen
Daily Bruin Contributor
With the weight of public pressure on their shoulders in light
of the drop in underrepresented minority admissions, the UC Board
of Regents critically discussed the future of UC eligibility
requirements with a faculty committee Thursday.
The board looked to the Board of Admissions and Relations with
Schools (BOARS) to provide solutions. Dr. Keith Widamen presented
possible changes to freshman eligibility requirements that would
try to promote diversity and quality. Under the proposal, the UC
Merit Scholars Program, prospective students would be admitted one
of two ways.
Students would be eligible if they fall in the top 4 percent of
their high school or if they make the top 12.5 percent statewide.
The regents responded to the proposal with skepticism.
The plan would also make changes to the role of SAT scores and
honors and AP units in eligibility. SAT scores would not be a
factor in eligibility for students who are in the top 4 percent of
their high school but they would be required to take it.
BOARS also suggested that honors and AP units be weighed less.
This would help out the students at high schools who offer few
honors and AP classes.
The most recent statistic has shown that only the top 11.1
percent of public high school students were eligible for the UC
system.
BOARS projects that taking the top 4 percent of students locally
would bump up the numbers to reach the UC goal of 12.5 percent.
This would make another 3,500 students eligible. Widamen predicts
that the plan would increase the enrollment of underrepresented
minorities by about 9 percent.
Following the proposal for the UC Merit Scholar’s program,
Widamen was deluged by a number of concerns by the regents.
Some regents were worried that weighing honors and AP courses
less would give students less incentive to take them.
Regent Tom Sayles expressed doubts that taking the top 4 percent
would make students seek to compete at easier schools.
"I don’t want parents shopping for the less competitive school,"
Sayles said.
But Widamen assured Sayles that this would not be the case "even
if they didn’t make the top 4 percent. If they were that good, they
would be able to make the top 12.5 percent statewide," Widamen
said.
Regent Ralph Ochoa felt positive that the 4 percent plan would
make the UC a realistic possibility for more students.
"In East Los Angeles, where I grew up, we looked to Cal State
LA," Ochoa said. "UCLA was really too far to consider."
Ward Connerly summed up the general apprehension by the
regents.
"What you’re getting from the board is a deep, deep concern with
any dissolution of quality," Connerly said. "Before we close escrow
on this (plan), we have to get reassurance."
Confident in his statistical analysis, Widamen reiterated that
the quality of students would not suffer if the UC made the the top
4 percent eligible.
Richard Atkinson, the UC president, was one of the members that
expressed optimism for the plan.
"I’m certainly not worried if the top 4 percent would be
productive at UC," Atkinson said. "I think they will."
The meeting was disrupted by a protest of 50 students led by the
Affirmative Action Coalition. The protesters were angry about the
regent’s elimination of race-based affirmative action in
admissions. They chanted "Educate don’t segregate" and "Hey hey no
no Ward Connerly has to go."
As the police escorted them out they clapped to the chant, "This
is just the beginning."
Action on the plan is expected by the July meeting of the
board.
CHARLES KUO/Daily Bruin
(right to left) Student regent Max Espinoza, faculty
representative Sandra Weiss and Chairman Meredith Khachigian
participate in the UC regents meeting.