Washington: After decades of gradual growth, the number of Black students enrolling at many elite colleges has dropped in the two years since the Supreme Court banned affirmative action in admissions, leaving some campuses with Black populations as small as 2 per cent of their freshman class, according to an Associated Press analysis.

New enrollment figures from 20 selective colleges provide mounting evidence of a backslide in Black enrollment. On almost all of the campuses, Black students account for a smaller share of new students this fall than in 2023. At Princeton and some others, the number of new Black students has fallen by nearly half in that span.

Princeton sophomore Christopher Quire said he was stunned when a recent welcome event for Black freshmen filled just half the room. “If this trend continues, in three years this campus will be as Black as it was in the Civil Rights era,” said Quire, a member of the campus' Black Student Union. “It feels like tying our feet together and telling us to restart.”

Some colleges downplayed trends spanning just two years, yet it raises questions about who should get a spot at elite campuses that open doors to the upper echelons of American life. It also emerges as the Trump administration unleashes a new campaign to police colleges it believes have quietly factored race into admissions decisions in defiance of the 2023 high court ruling.

Under scrutiny, colleges have been slower to release data
The AP analysis offers a view into 20 campuses that have released enrollment figures this fall. The national picture remains unclear as more colleges delay the release of their figures amid federal scrutiny. Many that had released figures by this time last year declined to share them now.

Many campuses have also seen decreases in Hispanic enrollment, though they have been more scattered and less pronounced. Trends among white and Asian American students were mixed. Yet the erosion of Black enrollment has been clear.

Among the 20 campuses, just one — Smith College — had a larger percentage of Black students in this year's freshman class than in 2023. Tulane University's numbers stayed flat. The others saw sizable dips, driving down Black enrollments that were often only 7-8 per cent of the student body. By contrast, Black students account for about 14 per cent of America's high school graduates.

At Caltech and Bates College, students who identified as Black accounted for only about 2 per cent of freshmen this year. At Harvard, new figures released Thursday show a second straight year of waning Black enrollment — from 18 per cent of freshmen in 2023 to 11.5 per cent this fall. Latino enrollment also dipped, while Asian American figures rose.

Swarthmore College said fewer Black students applied and enrolled despite using the same admissions process as last year. “It reflects the new legal landscape, one in which we expected to see these numbers fluctuate,” said college spokesperson Alisa Giardinelli.

Students notice dramatic changes
Princeton's Black students now make up 5 per cent of the new class, down from 9 per cent last year — the smallest share since 1968. Princeton spokesperson Jennifer Morrill attributed it to “natural fluctuations” in the applicant pool, saying the university has “scrupulously adhered” to the court's requirements.

Trump ramps up oversight of college admissions
Other factors may also be contributing, said James Murphy of Education Reform Now. He cited the Biden administration's troubled rollout of a new financial aid form and noted that some colleges may be retreating from diversity efforts amid Trump's scrutiny.

President Donald Trump recently ordered schools to release detailed admissions data each year to catch colleges allegedly using “racial proxies.” Conservative groups, including Students for Fair Admissions, have threatened lawsuits against universities they claim admit less-qualified Black, Latino, or white students over Asian Americans.

Some still see ways to build campus diversity
Researcher Richard Kahlenberg of the Progressive Policy Institute said the declines aren't as steep as feared and that colleges can still foster racial diversity by favoring low-income applicants and ending legacy admissions.

Princeton junior Kennedy Beal said she rarely sees Black men on campus. “It feels like we're being set back in time,” she said. “But at the same time, I still have faith that we will persevere. We will continue to demonstrate our excellence in these institutions.”