In a landmark decision on June 29, 2023, the Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in college admissions across the United States. Deerfield Academy’s Admissions office has not made significant changes to its application process in response, according to Director of Admission Amanda Bohnsack.
Ms. Bohnsack said that the ruling falls under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution, but because Deerfield Academy is not federally funded, it is not subject to the stringent rules that many highered schools are subject to.
Students applying to Deerfield are still welcome to optionally self-report racial and ethnic information. Deerfield supports a diverse pool of applicants because it believes that race-related experiences impact one’s life experiences.
Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Chip Davis explained, “To use the word holistic again, we have been a race-conscious admission office; our changes are going to happen through dialogue and what we think is a good effort to be in the spirit of the decision.”
Currently, Deerfield admissions has not changed its interview questions or application process for candidates directly because of the Supreme Court’s late June ruling. However, drawing on inspiration from ongoing dialogues with peer schools, the team may make future changes to its process in collaboration with Head of School John Austin and the Board of Trustees.
Ms. Bohnsack stressed that any changes that Deerfield Academy makes to its admissions process will be to improve the process overall rather than directly address the rul ing. She also stated that any changes will only be implemented on a small scale. “I don’t think this decision will drastically affect what we’ve been doing because we have always been committed to enrolling a really diverse group of kids at Deerfield,” she said.
Currently, Deerfield ensures a diverse applicant pool using a strategy that Mr. Davis called an “admission funnel.” He said, “In order to meet the mission-appropriate and diverse idea of your enrollment, you have to create that [diversity] at the top of that funnel … for people who are curious about Deerfield, long before they apply, we need to make sure that they’re coming from varied backgrounds.”
About the Supreme Court ruling, Mr. Davis added, “Reading the Court’s writings, you can be race-conscious in attracting candidates, the programs you use, and the relationships you build. Obviously, where you choose to recruit students may influence who’s coming into your funnel.”
Over the past year, Deerfield Academy admissions representatives have traveled worldwide to foster relationships with potential candidates. The admissions team has visited many major states in the US, including California and Texas, in addition to publicizing Deerfield in countries across Asia and Europe.
Before the Supreme Court decision, the admissions team anticipated these discussions around race-based affirmative action. The team met with other members of the Ten Schools Admissions Organization, which includes peer schools such as Choate Rosemary Hall, St. Paul’s School and The Lawrenceville School, last spring.
Mr. Davis said, “Higher institutions were galvanizing around the topics, perhaps before [they] needed to, but we [boarding schools] could wait for the [Supreme Court ruling] and then start these dialogues.” Mr. Davis said the main purpose of meeting with Ten Schools Admissions Organization member schools was to figure out “what this [court decision] has done for the best way to practice holistic admission…with so many variables in consideration for candidates.”
After the ruling, the admissions office met with the school legal counsel to discuss the court ruling’s implications on Deerfield admissions.
The admissions team also attended a professional development conference hosted by the Enrollment Management Association, an organization helping independent secondary schools with their enrollment needs. Director of Admissions Amanda Bohnsack said the team heard “from peer schools and attorneys for schools…to really make sure that [they] understood what the decision was and which parts of our process it might impact.”
The admission team plans to meet online with the Board of Trustees in late October on the issue. Mr. Davis said, “By the end of October, we’ll have a sense of those that need to be heard in the Deerfield community and their opinions.”
The Academy’s admissions team continues to stand by the educational benefits of diversity. While the SFFA v. Harvard case brought the admissions of higher institutions into the limelight, Deerfield Academy uses this opportunity to reflect upon its process rather than being swayed by the government ruling.
Ms. Bohnsack said, “For us, so much of it is just making sure that Deerfield is accessible, that kids know about a Deerfield education and what that means…so we will continue to do that, hoping to attract a smart, capable, kind, and talented group of applicants.”
