Equity Without Excellence Is Not Equal at All

More than 1,100 mathematics and science professors across the University of California system recently issued an extraordinary warning. They urged university leaders to reconsider the elimination of SAT and ACT testing for students seeking admission into STEM fields, arguing that many incoming students lack the mathematical preparation necessary to succeed in rigorous science and engineering coursework.

The professors' concerns extend far beyond standardized testing. They reflect a growing tension in American education between equity and excellence. For more than a decade, policymakers and educational leaders have increasingly responded to achievement gaps by reducing or eliminating measures of academic performance. Standardized tests, grading systems, selective admissions criteria, and advanced academic programs have all come under scrutiny as potential barriers to equity.

The intention is understandable. Every student deserves access to educational opportunity regardless of race, income, or family background. But opportunity and standards are not competing values. In fact, lowering standards in the name of equity often produces the opposite of its intended effect.

Equity without excellence is not equity at all.

America's economy increasingly depends on workers with advanced technical skills. The nation faces persistent shortages of engineers, computer scientists, nurses, electricians, machinists, and other skilled professionals. At the same time, federal and state governments are investing billions of dollars in semiconductor manufacturing, artificial intelligence, advanced energy production, and domestic industrial capacity. These investments assume the existence of a highly skilled workforce. Yet workforce readiness begins in the classroom.

Unfortunately, educational outcomes suggest growing cause for concern. Reading and mathematics achievement remain below pre-pandemic levels nationwide. Remedial coursework remains common at many colleges. Employers frequently report difficulty finding workers with the skills necessary for technical occupations. The challenge is not simply a labor shortage. It is increasingly a skills shortage.

The response to these trends should be to strengthen student preparation. Instead, many institutions have moved in the opposite direction. In K–12 education, grading reforms often reduce the consequences of missed assignments or poor performance. Selective academic programs have been curtailed in some districts in pursuit of demographic balance. Universities have deemphasized admissions criteria that once served as indicators of academic readiness.

None of these changes alter the underlying demands of calculus, chemistry, engineering, or computer science. Students who arrive underprepared still face those challenges. The difference is that deficiencies are often identified later, after students have already invested substantial time and money.

This is particularly troubling because the students most likely to be harmed by lowered expectations are often those whom equity initiatives are intended to support. Students from disadvantaged backgrounds benefit most from clear standards, rigorous instruction, and targeted academic support. Lowering expectations may reduce disparities statistically, but it does not improve actual preparedness or expand opportunity.

True educational equity requires helping more students meet high standards—not redefining success so that standards disappear.

America's international competitors understand this principle. High-performing education systems around the world continue to emphasize rigorous academics, technical proficiency, and merit-based advancement. They recognize that educational excellence is not an obstacle to opportunity; it is the foundation of opportunity.

The University of California professors have identified an uncomfortable reality. Achievement gaps cannot be solved by eliminating measures of achievement. Workforce shortages cannot be solved by graduating students who lack foundational skills. And economic competitiveness cannot be sustained if educational institutions become reluctant to distinguish between preparation and aspiration.

The path forward is not complicated, though it requires political courage. Schools should maintain rigorous academic standards while expanding tutoring, mentoring, advanced coursework, career pathways, and targeted interventions for struggling students. Policymakers should focus less on equalizing outcomes and more on expanding the number of students capable of meeting high expectations.

America's future prosperity depends on the quality of its human capital. A nation that lowers expectations in pursuit of equity risks achieving neither excellence nor fairness.

The goal should not be to make standards less demanding. The goal should be to help more students reach them.