The President made news this morning at the Unity convention of journalists of color when he said off-the-cuff that colleges shouldn't award applicants special points just because they have relatives who went to the school. These are called "legacy admissions." Bush was almost certainly a legacy admission at Yale (and, one might add, in his various careers after Yale.)
"President Bush said Friday he opposes the use of a family history at colleges or universities as a factor in determining admission. Bush stated his position to what's known as "legacy" in response to a question during a Washington forum for minority journalists called Unity 2004. He was asked, 'Colleges should get rid of legacy?' Bush responded, 'Well I think so, yes. I think it ought to be based upon merit.' Under legacy programs, applicants are given an advantage if their parents or grandparents attended the school. Bush, a third-generation graduate of Yale University, joked about his own legacy.
'Well, in my case, I had to knock on a lot of doors to follow the old man's footsteps,' he said to laughter."
Back to top