Ronald E. McNair High School Required To Dismantle Race Based Admissions

Ronald E. McNair Academic High School, one of New Jersey’s highest-ranked public high schools, must eliminate its race-based admissions policy under a settlement reached with the U.S. Department of Justice, setting the stage for a new admissions process beginning with the 2027-28 school year.

Federal officials said the longstanding admissions system, which allocated seats based on racial categories, violated federal civil rights law. School officials must develop a new admissions policy that does not consider race or national origin.

“Quota systems that define students by their race or national origin have been illegal since the 1970s,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Civil Rights Division said in a statement. “The district will no longer provide any preference or benefit to a McNair applicant based on his or her race or national origin.”

McNair Academic High School is consistently ranked among New Jersey’s highest-performing public high schools and is considered one of the state’s most competitive magnet schools.

The Justice Department characterized the admissions policy as an unlawful race-based preference. The settlement comes amid the Trump administration’s broader efforts to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in education and government.

Some warn this can deepen inequality in a state with already unequal public schools. New Jersey is the third least racially equal state in the country for education. On top of that, 77.8% of Black high schoolers and 79.3% of Hispanic high schoolers in New Jersey get a high school diploma compared to 89.1% of their white counterparts. 

New Jersey Urban News reached out to both the principal of McNair and the Jersey City School Board, but neither responded before publication. 

Background

Since its founding in 1976, McNair has used an admissions policy designed to maintain racial diversity by allocating seats among four racial categories. 25% must be white, 25% must be Black, 25% must be Hispanic, and 25% are “other”. The origin of this system is not documented, but the end of it will be the 2026-27 school year. A new system will be required for 2027-28 admission and beyond.

Although the admissions policy allocated 25% of seats to Black students and 25% to Hispanic students, the school’s actual enrollment has differed from those targets. During the most recent school year, Black and Hispanic students together made up approximately 31% of the student body.

“New Jersey’s public schools are among the most segregated in the nation by race and income and the subject of ongoing litigation (in which ELC serves as co-counsel),” Education Law Center executive Robert Kim told New Jersey Urban News. “The McNair school’s student population today includes a significantly lower percentage of economically disadvantaged and Black and Latino students compared to the average percentage of such students in public schools across the state.”

Economically disadvantaged students are underrepresented as well. A little over 35% of McNair’s students were economically disadvantaged, compared with 54% districtwide.

Denny Quinteros, a student of color at Kean University who also graduated from a top non-traditional public school, spoke on their importance.

“Being in a challenging academic environment pushed me to work harder, stay disciplined, and think about my future earlier than I probably would have otherwise,” Quinteros said. “It also helped me build the skills and confidence I needed to succeed at Kean. I think schools with high academic standards can open a lot of doors for students, so I understand why people are concerned about changes to admissions. At the same time, I think it’s important to make sure every qualified student has a fair chance to access those opportunities.”

Segregation

The McNair settlement arrives as New Jersey continues to grapple with broader questions about racial segregation in public education.

A 2023 Rutgers University-Newark study found that nearly 32 percent of New Jersey’s children (nearly 270,000) attend “racially and economically segregated” schools. A Patch analysis from the following year found that more than 18 percent of K-12 school districts are considered segregated (At least 80 percent of students of one race), and about 6% have at least 90 percent of students as one race.

Schools are so segregated in New Jersey that the Latino Action Network is suing the state over it. (The same lawsuit Kim’s Education Law Center is a co-counsel in). The same source that ranked New Jersey as the third lowest for racial equality in schools ranked it as the fourth most diverse state. New Jersey is also home to Kean University, one of the most diverse universities in the northern United States. 

Quinteros spoke on the importance of diversity in schools. 

“Learning to interact and collaborate with others who might not share my beliefs or way of life is, in my opinion, one of the greatest benefits,” Quinteros said. “It has made me more understanding of other viewpoints and more open-minded, which is something you would not gain as much in a more homogeneous setting.”

Looking Forward

The settlement could influence admissions policies at other selective public schools across New Jersey if districts review existing admissions practices to ensure compliance with federal civil rights law.

“The decision to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education and “transfer” its core functions, including school-related civil rights enforcement, to the Department of Justice and other agencies is disastrous for students and families in New Jersey,” Kim said.

With the collapse of federal civil rights enforcement, Kim believes it falls to the states to ensure equal opportunities. Kim also supports research, data collection, and transparency to see which types of students, such as race, income level, ability, and English learner status, attend which schools.

From there, Kim broke down necessary policies into three points. First, clarifying ways to increase diversity under federal or state law. Second, encouraging equitable access and participation in high-quality schools and programs. Finally, ensuring that school choice and non-traditional public programs decrease school segregation rather than increase it.

Quinteros shared a different perspective: That each student, regardless of race, should be given an equal chance according to their skills.

“Making sure these modifications don’t inadvertently limit chances for gifted students from marginalized groups who might not have had the same resources growing up is my top priority,” Quinteros said. “Ultimately, I want a system that is equitable and provides every eligible student, regardless of background, with a genuine opportunity to succeed.”

Magnet or private schools typically rank as the most prestigious schools to attend in New Jersey. Traditional public schools are required to take every student, regardless of race, economic status, or performance. Nontraditional public schools, meanwhile, tend to be very selective on who they accept, especially with crucial funding directly tied to performance. 

“Magnet, county vocational, and charter schools have the potential to aid in school desegregation by attracting students from wider and more diverse geographical regions than is possible for traditional public schools,” Kim said. “But without intelligently designed admission policies, they tend to exacerbate segregation.”

School officials have not yet released details about what the replacement admissions system will look like. Existing academic criteria, including grades, standardized test scores, teacher recommendations, and other merit-based measures, are expected to remain under consideration. However, the district has not finalized the new process.