Sponsored message
Audience-funded nonprofit news
radio tower icon laist logo
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Subscribe
  • Listen Now Playing Listen
Education

Judge Blocks SAT, ACT Scores For Admission On All UC Campuses

The recent college admissions scandal allegedly involved some parents hiring special proctors to administer entrance exams to their children and correct their answers. (Photo by Seth Perlman/AP) (Seth Perlman/AP)

Truth matters. Community matters. Your support makes both possible. LAist is one of the few places where news remains independent and free from political and corporate influence. Stand up for truth and for LAist. Make your year-end tax-deductible gift now.

The University of California must immediately stop using the scores from SAT and ACT standardized tests to decide admissions on all of its campuses under a preliminary injunction issued by a Superior Court judge.

The ruling comes three months after UC Regents voted to phase out the use of those scores by 2025. But Regents gave individual UC campuses the option to accept test scores from students in the interim. UCLA and UC Riverside were among the campuses that planned to continue accepting admissions tests results for the fall 2021 semester.

The preliminary injunction was granted in response to a request from lawyers from Public Counsel and other civil rights groups, who filed a lawsuit last year arguing that higher scores on these tests reflect financial access to test preparation rather than academic achievement.

Alameda County Superior Court Judge Brad Seligman agreed with the lawyers’ concerns that pandemic restrictions have greatly reduced the availability of testing centers and accommodations for disabled students are “almost nil.”

The companies that run the SAT and ACT tests did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

RELATED:

Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily newsletters. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.

You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our connected community. We are free to tell the full truth, to hold power to account without fear or favor, and to follow facts wherever they lead. Our only loyalty is to our audiences and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen our community.

Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive before year-end will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.

If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.

Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief

Make your tax-deductible year-end gift today

A row of graphics payment types: Visa, MasterCard, Apple Pay and PayPal, and  below a lock with Secure Payment text to the right