UToledo reworking race-based scholarships to comply with SCOTUS affirmative action ruling
The University of Toledo is continuing to adjust minority scholarship packages.
The school cites concerns over 70 previous scholarships that violated the Supreme Court's 2023 affirmative action ruling by making race a criterion for award eligibility.
In the wake of the landmark 2023 Supreme Court ruling against affirmative action in college admissions, one midwestern school appears to be still struggling to revise its race-based scholarships.
According to WTOL, the University of Toledo is continuing to adjust minority scholarship packages, citing concerns that over 70 of the school’s previous scholarships violated the Supreme Court ruling by making race a criterion for award eligibility.
“Because of the Supreme Court ruling and the impact on admissions, that same impact has affected scholarships, so therefore, if a scholarship was targeted for an African-American, a Latino, Native American student, we can’t award that scholarship,” Toledo’s Vice President of Advancement Floyd Akins told the outlet.
According to Akins, of the 73 scholarships that were initially brought into question, the school has successfully reworked 48 of them, revising eligibility criteria by making the awards open to students of all races.
Akins also stated that the other 25 awards were still suspended, noting that the donors who fund the scholarships had specifically requested that their donations be put towards race-based initiatives.
”These scholarships are the ones that we are focusing our attention on because donors gave their money to the university for a specific purpose, that purpose can no longer be used,” he said.
The scholarship revisions come in the wake of related efforts at the university to alter diversity-oriented programs and services. In July, the school combined its Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion with other programs, revoking its status as an independent office.
In a university news release, Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Scott Molito stated that the decision to combine offices does not impact the school’s commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, stressing that such efforts should be “integrated” with other efforts.
“We are deeply committed to supporting our students and a campus community that celebrates and respects people of all backgrounds and experiences. Rather than separate units for Student Affairs and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, those efforts should be integrated across everything we do,” Molito said. “Bringing all of these teams together in a more intentional way will enhance the way we support the student, faculty and staff experience at UToledo.”
Campus Reform has reached out to the University of Toledo for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.