California universities can no longer favor the children of alumni in the admissions process starting next year.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill banning so-called legacy admissions on Monday at all private colleges and universities in the state. Legacies were already banned at public schools.
“In California, everyone should be able to get ahead through merit, skill, and hard work,” Newsom said in a statement. “The California Dream shouldn’t be accessible to just a lucky few, which is why we’re opening the door to higher education wide enough for everyone, fairly.”
The new rule will take effect in September 2025, and it will make California the second state to ban legacies at private and public schools, following Maryland earlier this year. Colorado, Illinois and Virginia have banned legacies at public universities.
Several studies have shown children of alumni are much more likely to be admitted to elite universities than their non-legacy peers with similar academic achievements. Additionally, legacy students are far likelier to be white and wealthy.
Debates about legacies were reignited last year, when the Supreme Court banned affirmative action nationwide. Affirmative action had already been outlawed in California since 1996, and the University of California system banned legacies in 1998.
But major private schools, such as Stanford and the University of Southern California, continued to accept legacies. Children of alumni made up 16% of Stanford’s incoming 2020 class and 14% of USC’s incoming 2022 class, according to the schools.
“If we value diversity in higher education, we must level the playing field,” assemblyman Phil Ting said in a statement. “Hard work, good grades and a well-rounded background should earn you a spot in the incoming class – not the size of the check your family can write or who you’re related to.”