It is imperative that Northeastern establish the goal of increasing representation of Black students to 25%, Latinx students to 20%, and American Indian/Alaskan Native students to 1% of the student body as part of Northeastern’s 2025 Academic Plan, based on the most current Boston demographic statistics.

• The Admissions Office should include increasing the percentage of Boston Public School (BPS) high school graduates who matriculate to Northeastern as a key strategy in achieving this goal. The University should also actively work to increase partnerships with BPS such as mentorship programs like the Youth Development Initiative Project (YDIP), to aid in this goal.

• We are willing to assist in this goal through the creation of a diverse student committee who will work with Northeastern administration and/or admissions officers in reviewing applications and in outreach.

  • Precedent for these programs exist at peer institutions like Tufts, whose Diversity Admissions Council plays a similar role.

• The seven Northeastern University Cultural Centers should be integrated as stops during all official prospective student tours, especially those given by Northeastern Husky Ambassadors.

Recognizing that in the City of Boston “more than 60 percent of black millennials said they were not able to save or had to draw from their savings in order to meet their expenses, while no more than 41 percent of the other racial or ethnic groups was unable to save or had to dip into their savings to survive,” we call upon Northeastern to develop a plan to remove financial barriers to education for Black and other graduates of color.

• As student debt is a major contributing factor to the racial wealth gap, we recommend that the Board of Trustees develop a plan to ensure that no Northeastern student graduates with over $20,000 in student loans.

• The deposit commitment amount should be either waived or significantly reduced for students with financial need, as $600 is a barrier particularly to low-income students, many of whom hail from Black and other communities of color.

  • It is imperative that Northeastern instate culturally competent financial aid counselors who can relate to students’ various identity backgrounds, specifically those of Black students and other students from traditionally disadvantaged communities. These counselors should specialize in linking students to internal and external scholarship and grant opportunities.