Race on Campus

A racial-climate report divided a campus

• When is a racial-climate report more harmful than helpful? Faculty members at Greenfield Community College in Massachusetts wanted to hire a vice president for diversity, equity, and inclusion. But first the president wanted to understand the institution’s racial climate, which prompted a contract with a consulting firm. After the relationship with the firm turned sour and the contract was terminated, the consultant sent the president a 46-page document that described an institution where “racialized harm is allowed to continue without being addressed.” Our J. Brian Charles reports on what happened next.
• MIT’s freshman class is significantly less racially diverse. Fewer than one in six incoming freshmen at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, or 16 percent, identify as Black, Latino, Native American, or Pacific Islander, according to data released by the university. That’s a nine-percentage-point drop from previous classes. MIT’s dean of admissions attributed the drop to the 2023 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that blocks most colleges from considering race in admissions. Read more.