The Ohio State University and the University of Michigan might be less diverse places to go to school when the fall semester rolls around.
According to The Chronicle of Higher Education, Ohio State has reported it is experiencing an 18.2-percent drop in black applicants and that overall applications were down by 9.6 percent. U-M reported earlier this month that minority applications were down 23 percent from this time last year.
They are optimistic, however, that this will change, and so are we.
Since the report has been released, people have been offering up the idea that the affirmative action rulings in June, which ruled that a point-based, race-admissions system was unconstitutional, is responsible for the drop in minority applications.
But just because minority applications have dropped doesn't mean minority students are scared of applying.
The decline probably is a result of the sagging economy and students' problems with making tuition payments or even paying application fees. Students could be exploring the community college, two-year alternative in an attempt to save some cash. Overall applications might pick up with an upturn in the economy.
Despite this, it's still important for colleges to make sure minority students know, despite the new rulings, they still are welcome at these colleges. Minority students shouldn't think that the affirmative action ruling is meant to exclude them, and colleges need to do a better job of making them realize their campus still is a diverse and welcoming environment.
In order to keep campuses diverse and keep applications up, colleges need to show students there are ways to help finance their education through scholarships and financial aid.
The ideas that minority students no longer feel welcome as the result of the affirmative action is troubling, but it's far too early to tell. With the numbers showing that all applications are down, the more probable reason is that all students are having trouble paying for college - or perhaps they have senioritis and don't want to write one more admissions essay.
