In a word, yes.
Quoted in a Cavalier Daily article this morning, University of Virginia Dean of Admissions John Blackburn is at pains to explain why the student body at UVa is 56% female (59% in the College, 56% in Architecture, 87% Education, 97% Nursing, 44% Commerce, and 25% Engineering).
“Population has a big impact,” Blackburn said. “I think it reflects a change of the population in college students.”
Blackburn said between 20 and 25 percent of African-American college students nationwide are male, and similar disparities hold true for Hispanic students.
“As the two become larger cohorts in college populations, these trends will continue,” he added.
Since 75% to 80% of black college students are female, obviously giving preferences to blacks in effect gives preferences to women. Do those who cling to the the “disparate impact” theory of discrimination, which holds that a policy or action that has a “disparate impact” on minorities is discriminatory even in the absence of any discriminatory intent, lose any sleep over the gender discrimination that is inherent in the policy of racial preference?
And, speaking of gender discrimination, Dean Blackburn also said emphatically that no preferences would be given to men in admissions, despite their “underrepresentation.”
“At U.Va. we treat men and women equally in admission,” he said. “We will absolutely not consider giving special attention to men.”
I wonder why not. It couldn’t be that discriminating on the basis of sex violates some fundamental civil right. If that were the case, I’m sure the University wouldn’t so adamanantly and openly discriminate on the basis of race, which it does with its racial preferences.
I don”t really think the University discriminates against men, but consider the following explanatory comment from Dean Blackburn:
At the University, Dean of Undergraduate Admissions John A. Blackburn observed that in general males have higher SAT scores, but females make higher grades in tougher classes, including AP classes, because they tend to apply themselves more.
You can imagine the response if members of another “underrepresented” group were told that part of the reason they were underrepresented is that members of the “overrerpresented” group “tend to apply themselves more.”
ADDENDUM
If “diversity” is as all-fired important as its advocates claim, shouldn’t the University be giving preferences to men, and even additional scholarships, to induce them to enroll in Nursing and Education? Do those students in those schools not deserve the benefits of “diversity”? Or will the University admit that “diversity” is just a nice-sounding, fig-leaf justification for racial preferences?
I recall that either Georgia or Georgia Tech tried to enact a policy giving men preference, but some court struck it down.
It was the U of Ga.
Ga had an admissions policy that gave preferences to men and blacks, or (put another way) discriminated against women and whites.
The school was sued by women turned down when less qualified men were accepted.
The school changed its policy re gender. This was in 2000 or so.
I thought that was interesting. The school in effect said it would pick and choose what parts of the civil rights law to obey. I thought at the time I could get the school’s lawyer’s advice on the tax laws. I had an idea to obey the part of the law regarding the deductions but disregard the part about the tax rates.
Anyway, the school voluntary changed its admissions policies re gender. Its policy on racial preferences took longer. The taxpayers paid to defend the indefensible and the state fought the battle to the last ditch. And lost.
A couple of years back there were some big news reports about the lack of equal representation of men in college and a bunch of admission officials from different universities were saying they gave a “break” to men in admissions. I’m guessing they still do that to some extent, but maybe they don’t advertise it now.
The student populations at both pharmacy schools that my daughter has looked at are about 2/3 female.
Maybe all the centuries of male domination in arts and science were really the results of affirmative action.
: )