In the you-won’t-believe-this department, we have a story about the son of the Dallas School Superintendent benefiting from a preference program. (Source)
Michael Hinojosa earns over $300,000 a year, and his son Michael participated in a program for disadvantaged students. The program is run by a contractor the Dallas Independent School District paid $1.6 million. The program targets low-income students, which in most cases is a euphemism for “minorities,” and Hinojosa and son are racial minorities.
This episode is but one of several unintended consequences of preference programs, whether they’re created for low-income students or specifically for racial minorities. Racial minorities whose families have the means benefit from the program because they are racial minorities and presumed to be from low-income families. Otherwise, how would Hinojosa’s son have benefited from such a program?
“We actually actively recruited Michael Hinojosa because programs like this don’t work when they’re exclusionary,” said program director Michael Martinez. “It’s best when you’ve got first-generation kids sitting next to the valedictorian.”
First-generation status (and appearances) trumps financial need? Apparently so.
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