JANA SUMMERS Dianne Fields, a fourth-year
sociology student, speaks during an Affirmative Action Coalition
rally against SP-1 and SP-2 in Meyerhoff Park Wednesday.
By Shauna Mecartea and Barbara
Ortutay
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
The UC Board of Regents will vote next Wednesday whether to
replace their controversial policies on affirmative action with
another resolution.
RE-28, sponsored by Regent Judith Hopkinson, affirms Proposition
209 as law and states that the “provisions for admission
based on academic achievement outlined in SP-1 shall remain in
effect” until changes are approved by the regents upon
recommendation from the Academic Senate and the UC president.
The board approved SP-1 and 2 in 1995, ending the consideration
of race, gender and ethnicity in university admissions and hiring.
A year later, voters ended affirmative action statewide by
approving Proposition 209.
“The resolution will replace, supersede and thus eliminate
SP-1 and 2,” said Regent William Bagley in a statement.
“It is a logical extension of our program to reach out to
everyone.”
But Student Regent Justin Fong said the new proposal simply
reaffirms SP-1, and he will propose a substitute motion that would
in fact get rid of SP-1 and 2 once and for all.
“RE-28 does not repeal or rescind SP-1. If anything, it is
a reaffirmation,” he said, adding that his proposal would
affirm the UC’s commitment to diversity, outreach efforts,
that the UC will abide by state law, and that the board rescind
SP-1 and 2.
“The way RE-28 is written, it doesn’t say it will
eliminate SP-1,” Fong said, calling RE-28 an attempt at
“smoke and mirrors” by regents.
He added that he would have a draft of his proposal ready
today.
Regent Ward Connerly, who spearheaded the movement for SP-1 and
2 as well as the statewide effort to pass Proposition 209, stated
his support of RE-28 Wednesday, as did Bagley, a staunch supporter
of affirmative action.
“It may come as a surprise to (Bagley) to learn … that I
share his desire to remove the UC from the debate about race-based
affirmative action,” Connerly said in a statement. “The
virtue of RE-28 is that it is reasonable and fair to all
perspectives, consistent with the Constitution of California,
responsive to the negative perceptions about the effects of SP-1,
and leaves for another day those issues that are more appropriately
matters to be addressed in a different venue.”
SP-1 states that 50 to 75 percent of UC applicants must be
picked solely on academic achievement ““ GPA and SAT
scores.
RE-28 would expand SP-1’s definition of “academic
achievement” to include “academic and related
educational criteria.”
The question of how many students should be admitted based on
their grades alone is referred to the Academic Senate ““ but
that decision is contingent upon board approval.
Currently, the Senate is considering dropping the SAT I as an
admissions criterion to the UC.
The regents passed SP-1 and 2 by a 14-10 vote in 1995, over the
objection of all nine UC chancellors, academic senates and
faculty.
At UCLA on Wednesday, Affirmative Action Coalition members
organized in Meyerhoff Park to address the issue.
“We are demanding a full repeal of SP-1 and 2,” said
Karren Lane, chair of the African Student Union.
“We recognize that it puts an overemphasis on the SAT and
GPA, which have been proven to be culturally biased,” said
Lane, who is also running for president of the Undergraduate
Students Association Council.
The prospect of a replacement raised concerns that the language
of the new resolution will not be specific enough to rule out
legislative loopholes.
“We’re worried that it’s just going to be a
political game,” said Ghaith Mahmood, a third-year business
economics student and president of the Muslim Student
Association.
Bagley, who has long campaigned to overturn SP-1 and 2, told the
Associated Press “we shouldn’t have led the
cause” to end affirmative action.
“We did, and now we are trying to withdraw from the
cause,” he continued.
With reports from Daily Bruin wire services.