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Admissions Without Acquittal: The Effect of “Ban the Box” on College Admissions
(University of Oregon, 2019) Solheim, Hannah Patricia May
In February of 2018, Oregon State University President Edward J. Ray reaffirmed the university’s decision to “ban the box” on its application. Ray’s resolution kept any questions about an applicant’s criminal history off of the university’s application. Officially, President Ray’s policy was designed to protect black and Hispanic men, who are more likely to have felony convictions. However, implementing a “ban the box” (BTB) policy might not have a net positive effect on college enrollment for minorities. As economists studied analogous “ban the box” policies in the labor market, they found that BTB policies have a net negative effect on employment for young black and Hispanic men. Without criminal history information, employers may try to guess who has a criminal record, and avoid interviewing low-skilled black and Hispanic men as a result. Using data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), I explore whether this phenomenon occurs in the college admissions setting. Using the synthetic control method, I find that BTB policies may temporarily increase enrollment among black and Hispanic females. However, this policies may also cause long-term decreases in enrollment among Hispanic males. This suggests that statistical discrimination may be occurring.