States get bolder about banning legacy admissions. What does that mean for equity?

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At the end of September, California became the fifth and largest state to ban legacy admissions at colleges and universities. Public institutions in the state had dropped the practice decades earlier. The new law bars it at private, nonprofit schools.

The push to ban legacy admissions became more public after the 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision that did away with affirmative action, deeming it unconstitutional to consider race in admissions.

Why We Wrote This

In legislatures and on college campuses across the U.S., the issue of legacy admissions is heating up. California is the latest state to ban the practice – adding more fuel to a nationwide debate about how to create an even playing field for applicants.

Illinois, Maryland, and Virginia have also enacted bans this year, joining Colorado, which did so in 2021. Maryland became the first to include private schools. More states are considering taking action, and members of Congress have also embraced the idea.

For some institutions, it could mean the loss of a consistent revenue source, and, some argue, an important part of school culture and community. But opponents say the recent laws go a long way to support equal access to education.

“This is terrific news,” says James Murphy, at the nonprofit Education Reform Now. “Not only because it’s California and that’s a big and influential state, but also because it’s only the second state to abandon legacies in private universities.”

Should college applicants get preferential treatment if they are related to wealthy alumni or donors?

States are increasingly saying “No,” with California being the fifth and largest to do so, on Sept. 30. Public schools in that state had dropped the practice decades earlier. The new law bars it at private, nonprofit colleges and universities.

The Golden State joins Illinois, Maryland, Virginia, and Colorado, all of which have done away with legacy admissions at either all schools or at public institutions. Massachusetts and other states are considering similar action – and members of Congress have also embraced the idea. For some institutions, it could mean the loss of a consistent revenue source, and, some argue, an important part of school culture and community. But opponents say the recent laws go a long way to support equal access to education.

Why We Wrote This

In legislatures and on college campuses across the U.S., the issue of legacy admissions is heating up. California is the latest state to ban the practice – adding more fuel to a nationwide debate about how to create an even playing field for applicants.

“This is terrific news,” says James Murphy, director of career pathways and post-secondary policy at the nonprofit Education Reform Now. “Not only because it’s California and that’s a big and influential state, but also because it’s only the second state to abandon legacies in private universities.”

What’s driving states to ban legacy admissions?

The push to ban legacy admissions became more public after the 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision that did away with affirmative action, deeming it unconstitutional to consider race in admissions. In that decision, the high court also commented on other practices. Legacy admissions “while race-neutral on their face,” wrote Justice Neil Gorsuch in his concurring opinion, ”undoubtedly benefit white and wealthy applicants the most.”

Virginia state Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg, seen here speaking to supporters in 2023, sponsored a Senate bill banning public universities from using legacy admissions. It was signed into law by Gov. Glenn Youngkin in March 2024.

State bans are fairly recent. Colorado was the first to bar legacy admissions, at public schools, in 2021. Earlier this year, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore made his state the first to include private, nonprofit colleges and universities – as well as their public counterparts – in a ban. This year, Illinois and Virginia also passed laws banning legacy admissions at public institutions.

After the Supreme Court’s affirmative action decision, advocacy groups filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education asking for an investigation into legacy admissions at schools like Harvard. The University of Pennsylvania is currently being investigated after a separate complaint. A 2019 study showed that 43% of white students admitted to Harvard were legacies, athletes, or children of parents or relatives who donated to the university. It also showed that 70% of the school’s legacy students were white.

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