Philadelphia students and teachers prepare for a college future without affirmative action
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Students and educators said Friday they were working to try to help students of color realize their dreams after high school after the Supreme Court effectively ended affirmative action in June. There were Mercedes sedans, food, and a DJ.
"I didn't know that schools did stuff like this," said Murrell Dobbins Career and Technical Education High School senior Da'miya Scott. Her dream is to get into culinary school.
"And I've always wanted to cook, so I was just like, okay," Scott said.
But the student in North Philadelphia said she was worried about being admitted, not because of her grades but because of a June 2023 Supreme Court ruling. The high court decided colleges and universities can no longer consider race in admissions criteria. That basically ended Affirmative Action.
"I do think it's unfair," Scott said. "Because, people in neighborhoods like ours, they don't get as much attention."
It turns out Scott was correct.
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The Public Interest Law Center, a nonprofit research group looked at funding of Pennsylvania schools. Researchers stated, "Statewide, Black and Latinx students are also concentrated in the most underfunded districts, with 50% of Black students and 40% of Latinx students attending schools in districts that fall in the bottom 20% in terms of local wealth." This included urban, suburban, and rural districts. Researchers also said this showed in the lack of staffing and equipment in affected schools.
That is why the principal of Dobbins, Shervon Thompson, took matters into her own hands. In addition to running college and career fairs, she said she also changed the curriculum at her school.
"Last year, we introduced our first AP course, English Lit for our 11th Graders," she said. "This year, we have three altogether. So, we have two AP Lit and one AP art."
Thompson is also trying to help students who plan to enter the workforce, like aspiring barber and high-school junior Tyleef Venable.
"I get my license here, so I can open up my shop right after my senior year," Venable said.
As for Scott, she's not leaving anything up to chance.
"I just feel as though I gotta work harder I gotta put my name out there more and get seen," she said.
Organizers said they will stay the course to help Black and disadvantaged students. They say they will be back at Dobbins for another event this winter.