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Photo: Office of California Governor / Courtesy of the Office of the Governor
By Esther Wickham, for The Center Square
California Attorney General Rob Bonta and a coalition of 17 other Democratic attorneys general are urging the U.S. Department of Education to withdraw a proposed expansion of federal data collection on college admissions, arguing it would violate student privacy and distort civil rights law.
The coalition letter, sent Monday, urges the Education Department to withdraw its proposal, which would require colleges and universities to report detailed data to the federal government.
During a virtual news conference on Tuesday, Bonta criticized the proposed federal expansion of college admissions data collection, calling it an unjustified intrusion into privacy and a misrepresentation of civil rights law.
“We think their position is inappropriate and unjustifiable, so we’ll take one step at a time. I think our letter makes our position really clear,” Bonta said, answering questions from The Center Square.
“We think it’s an unnecessary intrusion into the privacy of Californians and is not an appropriate request,” Bonta added.
In August, President Trump directed the Department of Education to expand the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System as part of greater efforts for the administration to expand its investigations into DEI policies.
The expansion would require institutions to report detailed admissions, financial aid and student data, including test scores, grade point averages, income, Pell Grant eligibility and graduation outcomes.
Bonta accused federal officials of distorting diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.
“Black is white, up is down when they look at DEI,” Bonta said. “They think programs that address historical discrimination and personal discrimination are the harassment.”
He said even foundational civil rights protections are being wrongly characterized as DEI violations, citing the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments, as well as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
“They’re not enforcing civil rights,” Bonta continued. “What they think is civil rights is actually undermining people’s civil rights.”
The U.S. Department of Education did not respond to a request for comment from The Center Square.
The coalition includes attorneys general from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin.
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Categories: Race and Division
Headline fixed: Vermont AG wastes tax payer money in ongoing lawsuits against anything not Biden
Headline fixed, Vermont AG continues to waste Vermont Taxpayers money filing suits with Democrat Party on all things not Biden
The U.S. Department of Education’s (DED’s) Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) request for selective institutions to report highly detailed, disaggregated data on applicants, admitted students, and enrollees, is to allow the DED to monitor compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (prohibiting race-based discrimination) and detect potential use of racial proxies in admissions or financial aid. It primarily targets four-year selective institutions (those that do not admit all applicants).
The disaggregated data is to be differentiated by race and sex, including:
– Applicant pools, admissions decisions, and enrollment.
– High school GPA quintiles, standardized test scores, application timing (early decision/action vs. regular).
– Family income ranges, Pell Grant eligibility, first-generation status.
– Financial aid offered/received (merit- and need-based).
– Graduation rates, outcomes, and other admissions factors.
That the U.S. Department of Education did not respond to a request for comment from The Center Square doesn’t mean the DED is hiding anything. After all, the above information is commonly available, even to The Center Square.
But that these States are withholding the data is another issue. What are they trying to hide?
The coalition includes attorneys general from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin. The usual suspects lined up nose to butt, like sled dogs.
“Black is white, up is down when they look at DEI,” Bonta said.
[Funny. Accusing the other side of doing exactly what you are doing. 2 + 2 = 5 according to Bonta]
“They think programs that address historical discrimination and personal discrimination are the harassment.”
[Yes, at least he gets this fact right. Equity is the currency of slave masters. Free people must demand Equality. It’s written in all the history books.]