Dear USD Community,

Like many of you, I have followed conversations and articles leading up to today’s Supreme Court decisions on the cases against Harvard University and the University of North Carolina on the use of race in college admissions. While the decision was anticipated, the exact scope and implications for colleges and universities across the country will need to be carefully assessed in the coming weeks and months.

Our admissions process at the University of San Diego is fully aligned with our mission and values as a contemporary, Catholic university. Consistent with our core values, our holistic need-blind admissions review process considers each student individually based on myriad factors. In addition to their GPA and class rank, we encourage all applicants to share their personal stories including their extracurricular activities, their commitment to serving others, and how they believe they will contribute to our vibrant, academic community.

We are dedicated to an educational process centered on academic and inclusive excellence to prepare students to meet our world’s most urgent challenges. We are unwavering that a diversity of people, ideas, beliefs and other forms of difference are essential for education. We also have a commitment to creating a sense of belongingness in our campus community which is rooted in valuing human dignity and the Judeo-Christian conviction that all people are created in the image of God.

Over the coming weeks we will work together to educate ourselves and our community on the implications of today’s decision and chart a path forward that is within the bounds of the law and firmly guided by our mission, vision and values.

Peace,

James T. Harris III, DEd
President