Race
After Diversity Office Closures, Students Sustain Black History Month Programming
Several student groups organized Black History Month events across campus this February even as some organizers said they struggled to procure funding from the College following the closure of its diversity office last summer.
Alumni Interviewers Say Harvard’s Ban on Mentioning Race Has Created Confusion in Write-Ups
Alumni interviewers said Harvard College’s policy barring them from mentioning applicants’ race or national origin in their written reports has created confusion over what they can include in their evaluations — and made it harder to capture the full picture of applicants’ lives.
Black Student Enrollment More Than Doubles in Harvard Law’s Class of 2028
Harvard Law School enrolled 50 Black students in its 2028 J.D. class, a more than two-fold increase from the historic low in the previous class, according to data released by the American Bar Association on Monday.
ACLU President Deborah Archer Receives PBHA ‘Call of Service’ Award
American Civil Liberties Union President Deborah N. Archer delivered a grim assessment of the state of civil rights protections on Friday at a Phillips Brooks House Association event honoring her with the annual Robert Coles “Call of Service” award.
Misty Copeland, Brittney Griner, Spike Lee Among W.E.B. Du Bois Medal Recipients
Harvard’s Hutchins Center for African and African American Research awarded seven people the W.E.B. Du Bois Medal on Tuesday for their contributions to African and African American culture.
Harvard Bans Alumni Interviewers From Writing About Applicants’ Race, Ethnicity, or National Origin
Harvard will forbid alumni interviewers from including any information about an applicant’s race, ethnicity, or national origin in their written evaluations this admissions cycle.
Experts Hesitant to Determine Trends in Harvard’s Demographic Data
Several experts said decreases in Black and Hispanic student enrollment to the Class of 2029 are not enough to indicate a trend in the College’s demographics following the data release Thursday morning.
Black and Hispanic Enrollment Drops, Asian Enrollment Rises for Harvard’s Class of 2029
The proportion of Black and Hispanic students enrolled in Harvard College’s freshman class dropped in the second year after the Supreme Court overturned race-conscious undergraduate admissions, according to data released by Harvard on Thursday.
Descendant of Darby Vassall Leads Tour To Recognize Vassall’s Life, Cambridge’s History of Slavery
Denise Washington, a fourth-generation descendant of a man who was enslaved by the Harvard-affiliated Vassall family in the 19th century, launched a historical tour of Cambridge on Sunday visit sites that were significant to his life.
Student Employees Left Out of Work and In the Dark After Harvard’s Diversity Office Closures
When Harvard College’s three diversity offices shut their doors in July, their 35 undergraduate interns lost their jobs — and for weeks after the office closures, nobody told them.
What Can the Trump Administration Do With Harvard’s Race Data?
On Oct. 9, the University will hit a public deadline to turn over documents on its admissions process to the Department of Education, which has been investigating Harvard since May to determine whether it has illegally used race to evaluate applicants.
What Happened to Harvard Business School’s $25 Million Racial Equity Plan? The School Won’t Say.
Harvard Business School won’t say what happened to its $25 million Racial Equity Action Plan after the plan was apparently shuttered as Harvard backs away from the language of race and diversity.
Student Affinity Groups Turn to Alumni for Funding Amid DEI Office Closures
After the College restructured its diversity offices over the summer — leaving student affinity group leaders unsure about the availability of grants for club initiatives — some groups are seeking other avenues of funding, including alumni outreach.
Deming Puts Positive Spin on Harvard College Diversity Office Closures, but Acknowledges Outside Pressure
Harvard College Dean David J. Deming told students that the College can no longer host programming targeted at specific races or identity groups during a presentation to Peer Advising Fellows last week — telling attendees he assumed they already understood why the change was necessary.
Harvard College To Remove Designated Spaces for Women’s Center, Office for BGLTQ Student Life
Harvard College will close the designated spaces that previously housed the Women’s Center and the Office for BGLTQ Student Life, following a July decision to shutter those offices — along with one for minority students — and fold their staff into a new center within the Office of Culture and Community.
Harvard Welcomes Class of 2029 to a Campus Reshaped by Trump’s Second Presidency
From the start, Harvard’s Class of 2029 witnessed how the College is refashioning itself for a new political era, embracing calls to address antisemitism while backing away from diversity programs disfavored by the White House.
Harvard To Remove Black Lives Matter Message From Biology Professors’ Office Windows
A Harvard administrator told two professors on Tuesday that a Black Lives Matter sign displayed in their office windows would be taken down by this Saturday, describing it as a violation of the University’s campus use rules.
How Grievances at the Harvard Law Review Became Ammunition for the White House
A string of leaks this spring made the Law Review a target for the Trump administration. But the same fights — over the Israel-Palestine conflict, race, and meritocracy — have a longer history inside its own walls.
Trump Expands Race Data Disclosure Requirements, Putting Harvard Admissions Under Scrutiny Again
Harvard and all other American universities will now be required to submit data proving that they do not consider race in admissions, following a Thursday memorandum from President Donald Trump.
Conservative Legal Group Backs Justice Dept. Investigation Into Harvard’s Admissions Policies
America First Legal Foundation, a conservative legal group founded by senior Trump adviser Stephen Miller, published a letter Wednesday backing a federal investigation into whether Harvard has failed to comply with a Supreme Court ruling that ended affirmative action.
Harvard Merges Gender Equity and Community Conduct Offices
Harvard announced Monday that it will combine its gender equity and nondiscrimination efforts under a new Office for Community Support, Non-Discrimination, Rights, and Responsibilities in order to unify the University’s Title IX and Title VI compliance efforts.
Harvard College Closes Diversity Offices, Reassigns Staff to New ‘Harvard Foundation’
Harvard College will close its offices for minority students, LGBTQ students, and women and fold their staff under a new Office of Culture and Community, according to a Wednesday message from College Dean David J. Deming.
Rejecting Grad Union’s Title IX Request, Harvard Asks To Ban External Arbitration in All Discrimination Cases
As it negotiates with its graduate student union, Harvard is looking to excise contract language that lays out antidiscrimination protections and instead shift authority over complaints to policies and procedures maintained by the University.
Harvard Will Not Fund Affinity Group Graduation Celebrations Following Ed Department Warning
Harvard will no longer host or fund affinity group celebrations during Commencement, the University’s former diversity office wrote in an email to affinity groups on Monday afternoon.
New Ed Department Guidance Against Race-Conscious Policies Could Impact Scholarships, Ceremonies at Harvard
The Department of Education issued guidance on its letter that threatened to revoke funding from universities that have any race-conscious programs on Friday, putting affinity commencement celebrations and minority scholarships in jeopardy.
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