[274] in Discussion of MIT-community interests
achieving diversity at MIT
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Jimmy_B,MajMoola,MechWarrior,etc._)
Sat Apr 28 09:19:34 2001
Message-Id: <200104281319.JAA14000@all-night-tool.mit.edu>
To: mit-talk@MIT.EDU, spa-discuss@MIT.EDU
Date: Sat, 28 Apr 2001 09:19:15 -0400
From: "Jimmy_B,MajMoola,MechWarrior,etc._Chien-ta Wu" <jimmbswu@MIT.EDU>
It appears that many people here believe in the intrinsic educational value of
some sort of diversity. ie, we agree that it is important to have diversity
of some sort, at some level, at MIT. What we do not agree here is how to achieve
it.
I will describe the admissions process I want MIT to have:
Admissions will continue to score applicants on the 6 equally weighted categories:
the objective 3 (GPA, SAT I/ACT, SAT II), and the subjective 3 (Interview, Essay,
Extracurricular). They will use the average scores of the 6 categories to produce
a list of all applicants, from the highest score to the lowest.
They will divide the list, as sorted by rank, into 3 diff't categories: superstar
(top score), "will pass" (middle score), and "will fail" (bottom score).
They will reject the "will fail" category.
They will accept everyone in the superstar category.
Then, without using a quota nor a process, each admissions counselor will bear in
mind the value of diversity and applicant aspiration ("I want to complete my
education the MIT way, math & science" and "I am a nerd/geek") and ranking, and go
through their folders. At each iteration, they will pick out who they think
should be accepted. Then they collect the results to winnow out applicants. And
start the next iteration. They will continue this process until the applicant
pool is small enough to fit the incoming class.
The only guarantee that the incoming class will be diverse is that, when they were
winnowing out applicants, the counselors know diversity is important.
I believe that, at this point in time, and with the types of admissions counselors
we hire, that is enough. MIT does not hire racists to read admissions folders.
MIT hires counselors who are aware of their own, potential bias. We do not need to
use a special process based on race and sex to admit the incoming class.
Moreover, such special processes based on race and sex creates a perception of
reverse discrimination. Combating racists and sexists at MIT is hard enough. We
do not need to give them more weapons by telling them, "It is possible for someone
of less merit (based on the 6 categories), but the right skin color/sex to be
admited to MIT." They will only be more adamant with their views of MIT.
Educational institutions like MIT do not embrace affirmative action because they
want to help correct past wrongs of this country. That is only a very small part
of their reasons ( x<10%). The primary reason educational institutions embrace
affirmative action because diversity is perceived to have intrinsic educational
values. Just read the speech text whenever Chuck Vest is defending affirmative
action. Chuck always says, "Diversity is important because it has intrinsic
educational values ==> We need to defend affirmative action."
We can achieve educational diversity without affirmative action type programs, and
without the adverse effects of affirmative action type programs. With each
counselor keeping diversity in mind, we can achieve a similarly diverse incoming
frosh class.
So that was that,
B, crackpot and defender of the status quo
-----------
http://www.mit.edu/~jimmbswu "Who Dares, Wins."
--UK SAS
"It is good that war is so terrible,
else we should grow too fond of it."
--R. E. Lee
