Students decry possible loss of need-blind admission policy

Minority leaders decried the possible elimination of the University's need-blind admissions policy yesterday, saying that such a move could result in biased admissions which would deprive the University both of its diversity and its integrity. Gov. Robert Casey's proposed 1993 budget allocates no funding to the University, which could mean that the University will have to make severe cutbacks. And while University officials have said that there will be no change in the need-blind admissions policy of next year's freshman class, there is no guarantee that the policy will not be eliminated as a result of future cutbacks. The University's need-blind admissions policy ensures that students' financial situations will not determine whether or not they are accepted. Minority student leaders yesterday voiced extreme opposition to the potential elimination of need-blind admissions. "Need-blind admissions are of essential importance, if the University wants to maintain the diversity they hold so dear," said Wharton junior Martin Dias, president of the Black Student League. Pam Urueta, president of Asociacion Cultural de Estudiantes Latino Americanos, said cutting the policy would affect both minority and non-minority students alike. "It's a misconception that only minorities are affected by need-blind admissions," Urueta, a College junior said. Bill Gray, president of the University's chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, said that need-blind admissions allow everyone "a level playing field," and that without such a policy, biased admissions would inevitably follow. "I'd be drastically opposed to any termination or change of the need-blind admissions policy," Gray, a College sophomore said. "It would hurt not only African Americans, but any low and middle-income students who apply here, no matter what their race." Ellen Somekawa, a member of the Asian-American Student Alliance, said she feels that need-blind admissions should be a priority for the University. "Within the billion dollar campaign, money is being used to support [the Institute for Advanced Science and Technology] . . . Penn has a choice about whether it wants to be funding weapons research, or need-blind admissions," Somekawa, an arts and sciences graduate student, said. United Minorities Council President You-Lee Kim said the University's struggle to maintain need-blind admissions is a result of there being no specific money set aside to support the policy. "We can't continue to rely on unrestricted funds for something as important as need-blind admissions," Kim, a College junior, said. Kim said that an endowment to perpetuate the need-blind policy should be created from money accumulated from the University's $1 billion capital campaign. Rafael Hernandez, president of the Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan, said all minority organizations would discuss the issue of the possible elimination of need-blind admissions within the next week. "We'll try to make sure that [the proposed budget] will not affect [need-blind admissions] in the future," Hernandez, an Engineering senior, said.