At some prominent North Carolina universities — UNC Charlotte and Duke, for instance — the share of Black and Hispanic first-year students rose this year, bucking a trend at other well-known institutions like UNC-Chapel Hill .
Why it matters: A year after the Supreme Court ended race-conscious admissions nationwide, our state's higher education institutions are navigating how to diversify their student bodies. One way they're doing this is by focusing on economic diversity.
By the numbers: UNC Charlotte saw its share of Hispanic first-year students rise to 14.9% in 2024, up from 14.4% last year, according to figures from the university. The share of Black students rose to 18.9% in 2024, up from 18.5% in 2023.
- At Duke, 14% of first-year students identified as Hispanic this year, up from 13% last year , according to the school. This year, the share of Black students comprised 13% of the first-year class, up from 12% last year.
At other prestigious universities nationwide, diversity in the first-year class declined a year after SCOTUS' decision.
- At UNC-Chapel Hill, Black and Hispanic students make up a smaller proportion of the newest class of students compared to previous years, recent data from the school show.
- The Massachusetts Institute of Technology's incoming class saw a sharp decline in Black, Hispanic and Native American students, the New York Times reported .
Yes, but: It's hard to suss out sustainable trends from one year of data, experts have said.
- And the number of students at Duke not reporting their race at all rose from 5% to 11% — a significant jump.
- Duke also saw a notable decline in the number of Asian first-year students this year — a trend it is being questioned about by the group that successfully sued Harvard to end affirmative action in university admissions, the Times reported .
Representatives from North Carolina's other largest universities — NC State and East Carolina — did not yet have data ready to share.
The big picture: The Supreme Court's decision means that schools can't explicitly consider applicants' race in admissions . They can, however, consider a range of other criteria that speak to an applicant's background, including the essay, family income and school poverty .
Zoom in: This year, the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) process was plagued by delays and glitches. Anticipating these issues — coupled with the effects of the affirmative action decision — UNC Charlotte staffed up its financial aid department, adding IT professionals and summer counselors specializing in student outreach.
- "Our response was, 'Well how do we make sure we rise to that challenge and reach those students who need that support?'" said Claire Kirby, associate provost of enrollment management at UNC Charlotte.
- The focus on financial need meant that the university could get aid packages out relatively quickly, she added. More than 70% of students at Charlotte use FAFSA.
- Kirby touted Charlotte's relatively lower tuition ( $3,812 for North Carolina residents, not including room and board) as another draw to students, particularly first-generation ones who comprise approximately 30% of the student body.
- "Value is a primary concern for students and families," she said, adding that value bolsters Charlotte's reputation .
Between the lines: Duke similarly focused on the economic situations of its first-year class, with its Carolinas Initiative and increased its participation in the QuestBridge Match.
- The Carolinas Initiative , in its second year, provides full tuition grants for students from North Carolina or South Carolina whose families make under $150,000. QuestBridge helps connect low-income and first-generation students with scholarship opportunities.
- The percentage of students eligible for Pell Grants at Duke rose from 17% to 22%.
- Duke also used for the first time the College Board's Landscape tool that can broadly share insights into whether an applicant grew up in a neighborhood or school with significant economic disadvantages.
What they're saying: "We had a goal of increasing, in general, the economic diversity of the class, and we saw that with the increase in the Pell percent," Christoph Guttentag, dean of admissions at Duke University, told Axios.
Editor's note: We've updated this story with details about the decline in Asian enrollment at Duke.
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