Below is a transcript of an interview with Dr. Michael Drake, president of the University of California system, which was aired on “Face the Nation” on July 2, 2023.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Before last week’s Supreme Court ruling, nine states had bans on affirmative action in college admissions. California was the first to ban it following a ballot initiative in 1996. Joining us now is Dr. Michael Drake, president of the University of California system. Welcome back to the program. We want to explore your experience and the efforts made by the school system to promote diversity, which has cost $500 million since 2004. Is it possible to achieve a diverse student body without affirmative action? And how do you define diversity at this point?
DR. MICHAEL DRAKE, PRESIDENT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA: Thank you. We have been making efforts since the 90s and even earlier to reach out to students from diverse backgrounds and encourage them to apply to our universities. We have a comprehensive admissions process that considers all aspects of an applicant’s life and their interest in studying with us. We believe this can be done effectively without relying on affirmative action. Affirmative action was one tool we used in the past, but now we have adjusted to the changes in California law and are proud of our ability to attract a wide variety of students over the years.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Does this court ruling have any effect on you?
DR. DRAKE: We will have to see how it plays out. When California changed the law in the 1990s, it had a significant impact on us. It limited our admission criteria and sent a message to students that we were not interested in them. This led qualified students to choose other schools, including private institutions. However, since this ruling affects the entire nation, we believe its impact on us will be less significant.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Aside from affirmative action, you have used other methods to recruit a diverse student body. One example is the socio-economic disadvantage scale (SED) used by UC Davis and the medical school. Can you explain what an adversity score is and how it works?
DR. DRAKE: What these institutions, including Davis, are doing is looking at the life circumstances of applicants in a comprehensive manner when evaluating their applications. They take into account various factors and consider the overall quality of the application. We apply this approach to every student we admit, recognizing their individual qualities and qualifications.
MARGARET BRENNAN: How do you define diversity? We have observed a shift in the demographics of undergraduate students before and after the elimination of affirmative action. The percentage of African American students has remained fairly stable at around four to four-and-a-half percent. Why has there been little change in this area?
DR. DRAKE: Racism and lack of opportunity are prevalent issues in our society. We have been fighting against these challenges for many years, and affirmative action was one tool we used in the past to address them. Its removal has not eradicated the deep-rooted legacy of oppression and inequality in our country. We are committed to creating more opportunities for students who come from marginalized communities.
MARGARET BRENNAN: How do you measure the success of achieving a diverse student body? Do you aim to reflect the demographics of the state?
DR. DRAKE: We do not set specific demographic targets. Our goal is to provide equal opportunities and evaluate each application comprehensively. We can examine the demographics of our admitted students compared to graduating high school students in California to assess any disparities. If there is a significant gap, we work on bridging it through outreach programs, support initiatives for underrepresented schools, and financial aid programs for students from low-income backgrounds. Our aim is to ensure access to the university for all qualified individuals, which benefits both our institution and society as a whole.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Regarding standardized testing in admissions, you ended the use of SAT in 2020. Has this decision proven effective? Should other schools consider adopting a similar approach?
DR. DRAKE: We eliminated the SAT just before the pandemic, so it is difficult to separate the effects of this change from the overall impact of the pandemic. However, we have observed an increase in applications from diverse backgrounds, indicating that students who previously hesitated to apply now feel more confident in doing so. Our current student body is strong, and we consider this shift to be a positive development. Therefore, we will continue to keep the SAT requirement eliminated.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Thank you, Dr. Drake, for sharing your insights and experiences. We will be back shortly.
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