By COLLIN BINKLEY, AP Education Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — After decades of gradual growth, the number of Black students enrolling at many elite colleges has dropped in the two years since the Supreme Court banned affirmative action in admissions, leaving some campuses with Black populations as small as 2% of their freshman class, according to an Associated Press analysis.

New enrollment figures from 20 selective colleges provide mounting evidence of a backslide in Black enrollment. On almost all of the campuses, Black students account for a smaller share of new students this fall than in 2023. At Princeton and some others, the number of new Black students has fallen by nearly half in that span.

Princeton sophomore Christopher Quire said he was stunned when a recent welcome event for Black freshmen filled just half the room. Last year, it filled up so quickly they needed to find extra chairs.

“If this trend continues, in three years this campus will be as Black as it was in the Civil Rights era,” said Quire, a member of the campus’ Black Student Union. “It feels like tying our feet together and telling us to restart.”

Some colleges downplayed trends spanning just two years, yet it raises questions about who should get a spot at elite campuses that open doors to the upper echelons of American life. It also emerges as the Trump administration unleashes a new campaign to police colleges it believes have quietly factored race into admissions decisions in defiance of the 2023 high court ruling.

Under scrutiny, colleges have been slower to release data

The AP analysis offers a view into 20 campuses that have released enrollment figures this fall. The national picture remains unclear as more colleges delay the release of their figures amid federal scrutiny. The AP requested data from dozens of the nation’s most selective colleges, but many that had released figures by this time last year declined to share them.

Many campuses have also seen decreases in Hispanic enrollment, though they have been more scattered and less pronounced. Trends among white and Asian American students were mixed.

Yet the erosion of Black enrollment has been clear.

Among the 20 campuses, just one — Smith College — had a larger percentage of Black students in this year’s freshman class than in 2023. Tulane University’s numbers stayed flat. The others saw sizable dips over two years, driving down Black enrollments that were often only 7% or 8% of the student body. By contrast, Black students account for about 14% of America’s high school graduates.

At the California Institute of Technology and Bates College, students who identified as Black accounted for only about 2% of freshmen this year.

At Harvard University, new figures released Thursday show a second straight year of waning Black enrollment, going from 18% of freshmen in 2023 to 11.5% this fall. Latino enrollment is also down at the Ivy League campus, while Asian American figures ticked up.

Students notice dramatic changes

Princeton University appeared to weather the turmoil last year when its racial makeup remained about level. But this fall, the number of Black students fell to 5% of the new class, down from 9% last year. The last time Black students represented such a small share of new students was 1968, according to The Daily Princetonian, a student newspaper.

Princeton spokesperson Jennifer Morrill said it’s the result of natural fluctuations in the application pool, adding that Princeton has “scrupulously adhered” to the court’s requirements.

Some students say it can’t be ignored. Quire, the sophomore, said it threatens decades of progress at a campus that has become a stepping stone for social mobility.

“We’re very confused as to what changed and whether we should be expecting this to be a fluke,” Quire said.

Trump ramps up oversight of college admissions

Other factors could be contributing to the swings, said James Murphy, a director at the Education Reform Now think tank who is tracking fallout from the affirmative action ruling. The Biden administration’s troubled rollout of a new federal financial aid form could have played a role, he said, and some colleges may be backing away from diversity initiatives the Trump administration has sought to eliminate.

“Not too many institutions of higher education have stepped up and pushed back against the White House,” Murphy said. “I do expect that there will be increased pressure to come up with the numbers that the Trump administration wants.”

President Donald Trump escalated his scrutiny of college admissions in August, ordering schools to divulge vast troves of admissions data each year. It’s aimed at catching colleges that he accuses of using “racial proxies” to sway admissions decisions, including diversity statements that invite students to discuss their backgrounds.

Conservative organizations have also kept close watch. Last year, Students for Fair Admissions threatened to sue Princeton, Yale and Duke universities when their Asian American enrollments fell after the ruling — an outcome the organization said was “not possible under true race neutrality.” The group argued Black, Latino and white students were being admitted to elite colleges over more qualified Asian American students.

Some still see ways to build campus diversity

On average, the decreases don’t appear to be as steep as some college leaders predicted, said Richard Kahlenberg, a researcher at the Progressive Policy Institute. And he believes colleges can still do more to promote racial diversity, such as giving greater preference to students from lower-income families and eliminating legacy preferences that tend to benefit wealthy, white students.

“I wouldn’t want people to draw from the data a conclusion that the situation is hopeless,” he said.

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Earlier this month, Princeton junior Kennedy Beal was walking across campus with her older brother, who was visiting, when he asked a question she couldn’t answer: “Where are all the Black men?” They had been wandering around campus for more than two hours and saw none.

Beal said it sends the message that Black students don’t belong there. With few Black students on campus to begin with, it feels like her sense of community is being stripped away, she said.

“It feels like we’re being set back in time a little bit, and it’s heartbreaking to see. But at the same time, I still have faith that we will persevere,” Beal said. “We will continue to demonstrate our excellence in these institutions.”

The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

By ANTON L. DELGADO, Associated Press

BANGKOK (AP) — Philippine victims of a 2021 typhoon are seeking compensation from energy giant Shell for deaths and damage that they say were intensified by climate change partly resulting from the oil and gas company’s carbon emissions.

FILE -A ‘help’ sign is painted on the roof beside damaged homes caused by Typhoon Rai in Siargao island, Surigao del Norte, southern Philippines on, Dec. 22, 2021. (AP Photo/Alren Beronio, File)

Shell says it is not legally liable for the disaster wreaked by 2021 Super Typhoon Odette, known as Typhoon Rai internationally. It killed more than 400 people and was the second most costly storm in Philippine history.

The nearly 70 Filipinos who lost family members, suffered injuries or damage sent a “Letter Before Action” this week to Shell seeking an unspecified amount of compensation. If the company does not provide a satisfactory response, they say they plan to file a lawsuit in Britain in mid-December.

The group hopes to set an example ahead of the United Nations COP30 climate conference in Brazil next month.

“It is really important for me to carry our story outside the island, outside the Philippines, and tell the whole world that we are here, we exist,” Trixy Elle, one of the people participating in the case, told The Associated Press. “We have to fight, we have to stand, we need to speak up for our rights.”

FILE -The remains of a damaged boardwalk caused by Typhoon Rai in Siargao island, Surigao del Norte, southern Philippines on, Dec. 22, 2021. (AP Photo/Alren Beronio, File)

Elle said she plans to attend the climate conference next month to share her experiences.

Groups supporting the effort — Greenpeace Philippines, the Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center, the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice and the green energy transition group Uplift — said they focused on Shell because of its “high historic emissions and early knowledge of the causes and effects of climate change.”

The Carbon Majors Database, run by the global, nonprofit think tank InfluenceMap, ranks Shell as one of the largest corporate emitters of greenhouse gases, contributing 2.1% of global emissions since the beginning of the industrial revolution.

“We agree that action is needed now on climate change,” a Shell spokesperson told The Associated Press after the Letter Before Action was delivered to the company’s headquarters in London. “As we supply vital energy the world needs today, we are transforming our business to supply lower-carbon fuels for the future. The suggestion that Shell had unique knowledge about climate change is simply not true.”

Last year, Shell succeeded in getting a landmark climate ruling overturned in the Netherlands, where a court had ordered the company to drastically cut its carbon emissions.

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Southeast Asia is extremely vulnerable to climate change. The Philippines is often near the top of the Global Climate Risk Index. This year brought several deadly storms, such as Bualoi, Ragasa, Co-may and Matmo.

The case against Shell cites research by Ben Clarke, an associate at the Imperial College of London’s Centre for Environmental Policy, who found that the heavy rains and high winds made typhoon Odette more dangerous.

The Typhoon Odette case shows vulnerable communities can use legal means to seek damages over climate change, said Jameela Joy Reyes, of the London School of Economics’ Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment.

Globally, at least 226 lawsuits over climate issues were filed last year, according to the Grantham Institute. It is tracking nearly 3,000 cases across 60 countries.

Past watershed climate cases focused on potential future damage, so initiatives addressing past damage are a testing ground, said Sara Phillips at the Stockholm Environment Institute.

“Courts have generally accepted that climate change is human-induced, but they have been cautious about assigning liability to individual companies,” she said.

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

A controversial resolution proposed by the Forest Lake School Board to accept the resignation of a school board member at Thursday night’s meeting and immediately appoint his successor has been pulled from the agenda.

Instead the school board will vote on Thursday night to accept the resignation of School Board Member Luke Hagglund, effective at 11:59 p.m. Thursday, and then vote on a resolution to determine the process and timeline for filling his vacancy.

Hagglund, whose term expires on Jan. 4, 2027, told the Pioneer Press earlier this week that he is resigning due to “personal reasons.”

By law, Hagglund’s seat must be filled by appointment and then put up for a vote at the next school board election.

According to the original agenda for Thursday’s board meeting, the board planned to vote on a resolution appointing Forest Lake resident Scot Doboszenski to fill the remainder of Hagglund’s term. Hagglund told the Pioneer Press that he planned to vote on Doboszenski’s appointment.

An attorney for Education Minnesota, however, sent a letter to Board Chairman Curt Rebelein on Wednesday stating that the vote would be illegal.

“Before member Hagglund’s resignation becomes effective, the board will vote on an appointment to fill his vacancy that does not yet exist,” attorney Jonathan Reiner wrote. “Further, Hagglund himself could vote on the appointment to fill his vacancy. Voting on an appointment that does not exist and allowing Hagglund to vote on his successor violates the law. … Only remaining members of the board may vote to fill the vacancy.”

The new resolution, to be voted on Thursday night, calls for the board to discuss and determine the process and timeline to fill the board vacancy.

“The vacancy must be filled by board appointment by a resolution entered in the minutes and shall be effective 30 days following the adoption of the resolution,” the resolution states. “If the appointment becomes effective, it shall continue for the remainder of the unexpired term. Because the vacancy occurs less than two years prior to the expiration of the term, no special election is required and the appointee of the board shall serve for the remainder of the unexpired term.”

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By Jaclyn Cosgrove, Los Angeles Times

LOS ANGELES — I thought I’d noticed everything on the four-mile stretch of the Gabrielino Trail from its western trailhead near Pasadena to the Gould Mesa campground in Angeles National Forest.

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Sip your way through California’s Midpeninsula Wine Trail

I have a favorite sycamore tree about a mile in that, if it weren’t surrounded by poison oak, I would climb. I know some of the best water spots to splash around in the Arroyo Seco. I know how to identify and spot sacred datura, a common sight along the path.

But then I hiked the trail with a group of children (and a handful of grown-ups) from the L.A.-based adventure club Hiking Adventures With Kids (or HAWKs for short) and was reconnected with the childhood sense of wonder that our day-to-day adult lives grind down.

I saw the trail through the eyes of tweens who love nature so much, they screamed multiple facts at me, often all at once, including how cool vampire squid are, that rolly-pollies are related to crabs and that my skin was actively dying and falling off my body. It was such a comfort.

Here’s what I learned from my new trail buddies. I hope these tips help remind you to slow down and appreciate the wonders of our local flora and fauna.

Kelly Knowles, a HAWKs educator, explains to the group the cultural significance of sacred datura to local Indigenous peoples. (Jaclyn Cosgrove/Los Angeles Times/TNS)

1. A group of canines being walked on the trail by a human is a ‘dog parade.’

Wave accordingly.

2. If you see poison oak, tell a friend.

These kids saved me multiple times from brushing up against the woody shrub. They reminded me: “Leaves of three, let it be; if it’s hairy, it’s a berry!”

3. Eggnog.

This is less of a tip and more of an inside joke between best friends Lila and Elliot, both 10, who asked really nicely for me to include it. May they forever remember the time one of the largest newspapers in America published this.

4. Put animals down that don’t want to be touched.

Bradley Rydholm, a HAWKs educator co-leading the day’s hike, found a diabolical ironclad beetle to show the kids. It was at first playing dead, and some of the children reached out to touch it.

“You need to put him down because he looks like he doesn’t want to be touched,” Kaija, 8, said. “If they’re moving in your hand, that means it’s OK, but if they’re playing dead, you gotta put them back.”

Rydholm gently agreed and placed the beetle back in its pile of dirt and leaves.

5. When naming bugs, consider a compromise.

OK, perhaps this is a lesson the kids learned from me. The group was in a debate over whether to name the aforementioned diabolical ironclad beetle, with some voting for “Desi” and others voting for “Jim.”

This reporter, in the name of peace, suggested Desi Jim. “Bye, Desi Jim!” they called in unison as we continued onward.

6. Follow the ethics of frog catching.

Kaija, who asked whether I could make her a wolf in my story, told me that it’s best to catch frogs, name them and then release them.

I asked her whether she had any tips for naming frogs. “Jeremy, Fred, Pineapple,” she said, adding that she names them by their color.

I wanted to learn what color Jeremy was, but she discovered something far more interesting than me on the trail and ran off.

7. If you want to touch a bug, take a picture first.

Ella, 8, told me that after you take a picture of the insect, you can use a smartphone to identify it and figure out whether it is venomous. (Note: Unlike plenty of adults, she knew the difference between “poisonous” and “venomous” and used the words correctly!)

“If it isn’t [venomous] and it’s totally safe, I would probably bring gloves because I’m scared of picking up bugs,” Ella said. “One time a lady bug peed on me.”

8. It is important to have a compass.

Children from a HAWKs group slide down a concrete channel just off the Gabrielino Trail near Pasadena, California. (Jaclyn Cosgrove/Los Angeles Times/TNS)

“Because if you get lost, it’s not very efficient to always rely on the North Star. Because it’s only around for a little bit [of] time. So if you don’t have a compass and you get lost, you’re going to have to wait until night to be able to move,” said Luca, 9, who bought himself a compass in a local shop in Felton.

Luca and I swapped adventure stories, as he is quite the world traveler. As a bonus tip, he informed me that it’s easier to roast marshmallows on a volcano (he visited one in Guatemala) than over a campfire. The volcano’s heat slow roasts the marshmallows; with a campfire, you’re more likely to accidentally light them on fire.

9. Avoid hills.

A few of the kids recently went on a HAWKs hike that apparently involved a “death road” that felt like “the stairwell of a million stairs” that went “pretty much nowhere” and had no real views, per Luca’s description.

Elliot, when asked for tips that adults should consider while hiking, told me that she enjoys being outside, but “I don’t really like going uphill.”

Same, girl. Same.

10. Appreciate the beauty of nature.

“I really like water,” Luca said. “Just enjoy the sound of water and just enjoy the nature, and check out the animals, lizards, snakes, butterflies and moths.”

Children from HAWKs, an L.A.-based company that takes kids on outdoors adventures, cross the Arroyo Seco near Pasadena, California. (Jaclyn Cosgrove/Los Angeles Times/TNS)

“It’s really beautiful to see all these paths,” Lila said. “The beauty of nature is so fun, and it’s a good way to get a workout in or just get off screens because kids these days are on screens a lot. Brain rot!”

“I just remember it’s really good for me,” Elliot said. “The same thing about screens too, even though I don’t have an iPad since my brother broke it. … Honestly, I don’t want to think about anything from school or anything. Just want to be in the moment, ya know?”

©2025 Los Angeles Times. Visit at latimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.