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WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2003

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has opened two summer programs designed for disadvantaged students to white and Asian applicants.

The school was under pressure from the Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, which had been investigating the programs. Two anti-affirmative groups asked for a review.

The programs affected are MITES, for high-school students about to enter their senior year, and Project Interphase, for students who have been admitted to MIT and want to spend the summer before their first year getting better acquainted with the school.

Although both have been aimed at Native Americans, Hispanics and African-Americans, Interphase has accepted students of other racial and ethnic backgrounds. Press accounts have said white and Asian students have been excluded.

Get the Story:
MIT to open pre-college summer enrichment programs to all races (MIT News 2/11)
MIT drops a policy for minorities (The Boston Globe 2/12)
MIT to End Programs' Racial Exclusiveness (The Washington Post 2/12)

Relevant Links:
Office of Minority Education, MIT - http://web.mit.edu/ome/programs.html
MITES - http://web.mit.edu/mites/www
MIT - http://www.mit.edu