Some Harvard students have launched a petition urging the university to abandon plans to introduce grading reforms, calling it “racist.”
“This petition calls on Harvard to reject the proposed grading policy, arguing that it is not only flawed but actually racially harmful,” petition Angelina Agostini, a freshman at Harvard University, wrote on Change.org.
“We address racism as a core issue and argue that while the policy is viewed as neutral ‘differentiation,’ it functions as a ranking and classification system that reflects and reinforces existing racial and socioeconomic hierarchies,” the petition reads. “Because first-generation, low-income (FGLI) students and students of color are impacted by structural inequities long before they enter campus, this policy only exacerbates these shortcomings rather than correcting them.”
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Students walk past banners hanging at the Memorial Chapel on the campus of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on May 27, 2025.
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On March 30, Dean of Undergraduate Education Amanda Claybaugh announced that Harvard University will postpone the controversial grading reform until the fall of 2027 and implement the new “SAT+” scoring – “Harvard Crimson” report.
According to the student newspaper, an initial version of the reform was to “severely restrict A grades”, which “caused strong opposition from students and cautious concern from teachers”.
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February, Harvard Crimson famous The proposal follows an October 2025 report from Claybaugh that found more than 60% of grade Harvard undergraduates are getting A’s, compared with just one in four students 20 years ago.
The report found that grade inflation began to increase in the late 2010s and spiked in the 2010s. COVID-19 pandemicis now stabilizing.
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The revised reform will make three major changes, namely delaying implementation by one year, adjusting the way the upper limit of A grades is estimated, and adding new grades to the satisfactory/unsatisfactory (SAT/UNSAT) grading system.
in a letter “The proposed grading policy is blatantly racist. Its harms are not hypothetical and have historically caused severe harm and burden to students of color and first-generation, low-income (FGLI) students,” Agostini and another student wrote in a letter to “Harvard undergraduates, FAS faculty, Amanda Klebaugh, the Undergraduate Education Policy Committee, and others who may be involved in the matter.”
“For everyone reading this letter, we want to reiterate that students of color at FGLI are not less capable, intelligent, or worthy than their privileged peers,” the letter continued. “What is different is the burden we are forced to bear. Such policies shift the costs of institutional decisions onto marginalized students while dismissing the resulting harms as accidental or non-existent. So-called ‘neutral’ standards can produce racial outcomes without discriminatory intent (Inoue, 2023). History has shown where this can lead, and ignoring these lessons will only ensure that harm will be repeated.”
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People walk through the gates as they exit Harvard Yard on the campus of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, April 15, 2025.
Agostini and her co-signers also called Harvard’s history “sexist, racist and classist” and urged the faculty not to repeat its mistakes.
“We urge you to center the well-being of your students, not reputational concerns,” they wrote. “Do not act on the whims of your current reputation and forget how it will be remembered. Harvard’s history is steeped in sexism, racism, and classism. Regardless of its intentions, this policy will reinforce that legacy.”
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Massachusetts Hall and Johnston Gate are seen in Harvard Yard in the Historic Center of Harvard University on November 22, 2024 in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
They continued, “Let us work together to shape a future that supports all students while expanding Harvard’s rigorous educational environment. This means creating targeted resources, acknowledging differences in experience and identity, embracing diverse educational pedagogies, and refocusing on the rich academic experience expected of Harvard.”
Fox News Digital, through Change.org, reached out to Harvard and Agostini for comment.
Original source of the article: Harvard students protest new grading policy they call ‘racist’
