Benefits and Losses (Ann Speaking)
						MAIN PATH: John
			John

That's too simple, Fred.

For one thing, black students have excellent graduation rates at some very good schools. Harvard, 92%; Yale, 90%; Dartmouth, 90%; Princeton, 89%; Brown, 88%. And that's just the top schools.

And here's another thing. Black women have been doing quite well in college. Their graduation rates are good, and the results are beginning to show. Black women who work full time and have 4 years of college make the same money as similar white women. I call that a benefit, and affirmative action is PART of the reason they have done so well.

I will agree that the overall college dropout rate of blacks is higher than whites. There's a problem there. No contest. Some of the students get into schools that they aren't prepared for, but others get their big chance to do well. We have to balance these things.

I don't like the rate of failure any more than you do, but we've got to look to the future. If we can maintain the demand for good black students, the supply will increase. There will be some people who are hurt in the process. But in the long run there will be more and more students who can meet the highest standards. We've got to be in this for the long haul.

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