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After decades of gradual increase, the number of Black Student enrollment has declined in many elite colleges in the last two years Supreme Court Affirmative action has been banned in admissions, reducing the black population on some campuses to less than 2% of their freshman class, according to an Associated Press analysis.
New enrollment data from 20 selective colleges provides growing evidence of declining Black enrollment. On almost all campuses, the share of black students among new students is lower this time than in 2023. At Princeton and some other campuses, the number of new black students has nearly halved over that period.
Christopher Quire, a second-year Princeton student, said he was stunned when only half the room was full at a recent reception for black newcomers. Last year, it filled up so quickly they had to find extra chairs.
Choir, a member of the campus’s Black Student Union, said, “If this trend continues, in three years this campus will be as black as it was in the civil rights era.” “It feels like we’re tying our feet together and asking us to restart.”
Some colleges paid little attention to the trends of only two years, yet this raises questions about who should get a spot on the elite campuses that open doors to the upper echelons of American life. It also comes as the Trump administration launches a new campaign to police colleges it believes quietly factor race into admissions decisions in defiance of a 2023 high court ruling.
Under scrutiny, colleges have been slow to release data
The AP analysis takes a look at 20 campuses that have released enrollment figures this fall. The national picture remains unclear as more colleges delay releasing their data amid the federal investigation. The AP requested data from dozens of the nation’s most selective colleges, but many of the colleges that released data by this time last year declined to share them.
Many campuses have also seen declines in Hispanic enrollment, although they are more scattered and less pronounced. trends between white and Asian American The students were mixed.
Yet the erosion of black enrollment has become apparent.
Of the 20 campuses, only one – Smith College – had a higher percentage of Black students in this year’s first class than in 2023. Tulane University’s numbers remained stable. Others saw larger declines over two years, reducing black enrollment to often only 7% or 8% of the student body. In contrast, black students account for about 14% of America’s high school graduates.
At the California Institute of Technology and Bates College, only 2% of new students this year identify as Black.
At Harvard University, new figures released Thursday show a decline in black enrollment for the second consecutive year, from 18% of freshmen in 2023 to 11.5% this fall. Latino enrollment at Ivy League campuses has also declined, while Asian American figures have increased.
Students see dramatic changes
Princeton University appeared to be facing an upheaval last year, when its racial makeup remained roughly level. But this fall, the number of black students in the freshman class dropped to 5% from 9% last year. According to The Daily Princetonian, a student newspaper, the last time black students represented such a small share of freshmen was in 1968.
Princeton spokeswoman Jennifer Morrill said this was the result of natural fluctuations in the application pool, adding that Princeton had “faithfully complied” with the court’s requirements.
Some students say that this cannot be ignored. Choir, a second-year student, said it threatens decades of progress on a campus that has become a stepping stone for social mobility.
“We’re very confused about what has changed and whether we should expect this to be a random event,” Quire said.
Trump increases oversight of college admissions
Other factors may also contribute to fluctuations, he said. james murphyA director of the Education Reform Now think tank, which is tracking the consequences of affirmative action decisions. The Biden administration’s troubled rollout of new federal financial aid forms may have played a role, he said, and some colleges may be moving back from diversity initiatives that the Trump administration has sought to eliminate.
“Many institutions of higher education have not stepped up and taken action against the White House,” Murphy said. “I expect there will be increased pressure to bring in the numbers the Trump administration wants.”
chairman donald trump stepped up its scrutiny of college admissions in August, ordering schools to disclose large amounts of admissions data each year. It aims to hold colleges he accuses of using “racial proxies” to influence admissions decisions, including diversity statements that invite students to discuss their backgrounds.
Conservative organizations have also kept a close watch. Last year, Students for Fair Admissions threatened to sue Princeton, Yale, and Duke universities after their Asian American enrollments declined following the decision – an outcome the organization said was “not possible under true race neutrality.” The group argued that black, Latino, and white students were being admitted to elite colleges over more qualified Asian American students.
Some still see ways to bring diversity to campus
On average, the decline does not appear to be as steep as some college leaders had predicted, said Richard Kahlenberg, a researcher at the Progressive Policy Institute. And he believes colleges can still do more to promote racial diversity, such as giving more priority to students from low-income families and eliminating legacy preferences that benefit wealthier, white students.
“I wouldn’t want people to conclude from the data that the situation is bleak,” he said.
Earlier this month, Princeton junior Kennedy Beal was walking around campus with her older brother when she asked a question she couldn’t answer: “Where are all the black people?” They roamed around the campus for more than two hours and did not find anyone.
Beal said it sends the message that black students don’t belong there. Initially, with few black students on campus, it felt like their sense of community was being taken away, she said.
Beal said, “It feels like we’re going back in time a little bit, and it’s heartbreaking to see. But at the same time, I’m still confident that we will persevere.” “We will continue to showcase our excellence in these institutions.”
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