What Was the George C. Brooks Scholarship and Why It Was Eliminated

The George C. Brooks Scholarship was an initiative at the University of Missouri, Columbia (often called Mizzou), intended to support students from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups. Named after George C. Brooks, who was director of MU’s financial aid office for many years and helped establish its work-study program, the scholarship considered race as one factor among others in its selection process, alongside academic merit, class rank, standardized test scores, interviews, etc.

The scholarship was substantial; for recipients it covered about 70% of tuition in many cases. One student, Elijah Brown, has described how the Brooks Scholarship allowed him to focus more on study rather than juggling multiple jobs, and how it transformed his academic trajectory.

In 2023, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard / UNC which forbade the consideration of race in admissions and, implicitly, in many race-conscious scholarships, universities including Mizzou ended race-based scholarships such as Brooks. Although the ruling directly addressed admissions, its logic and external legal pressures have also been interpreted to apply to scholarships and financial aid that consider race.

Because of that decision and related state and system policies, the Brooks Scholarship was discontinued. Students who had already been awarded it before the ruling often retained it under renewal rules so long as they met academic criteria, but prospective students are no longer eligible under the former race-conscious criteria.

Universities That Have Stopped—or Continued—Race-Based Scholarships & The Impact on Minority Enrollment

Since the 2023 decision, many institutions have stopped offering race-based scholarships, paused them, or are reviewing existing programs. Others have taken different approaches or interpreted the ruling in ways that allow some similar supports to continue. Below are examples, data where available, and what the trends suggest.

Universities That Stopped or Paused Race-Based Scholarships

  • University of Missouri (Mizzou): As noted above, Brooks Scholarship and similar race-conscious aid were ended in response to the Supreme Court ruling.
  • Ohio University: Paused awarding race-based diversity scholarships.
  • Seven Ohio public universities including University of Akron, University of Toledo, Cleveland State, Kent State, Youngstown State, Ohio University, Ohio State University: Reviewing race-based scholarships; Toledo paused distributions.

Universities That Have Continued or Found Alternatives

The data is less clear about which universities have continued exactly the same kind of race-based aid after the ruling, but some have tried to reframe scholarships, work with donor agreements, use race-neutral criteria, or shift toward need-based or socioeconomic status considerations. Some institutions argue the Supreme Court ruling concerns admissions, not always financial aid, and are seeking legal clarification or adjusting donor agreements accordingly.

Minority Enrollment Trends (2015-2025, where data exists)

Finding precise, consistent year-over-year public data for all universities that offered race-based scholarships is difficult. However, there are general trends:

  • According to EducationData.org, in 2015 the overall percentage of U.S. college students who identified as Black or African American was about 13.41%, which has gradually declined, reaching around 12.5% in 2022. 
  • Black student enrollment in higher education (undergraduate + graduate) has declined since 2010: one fact sheet notes that Black student enrollment dropped from ~3.04 million in fall 2010 to about 2.33 million in a more recent year, a ~23% decrease for some categories. 
  • The share of total enrollment by underrepresented minorities has grown (or at least remained high) in some states and institutions, especially among Hispanic/Latine students. But for many African American students, the decline or stagnation is evident. 

Because many race-based scholarships are being eliminated or modified, there is concern among education policy experts that minority enrollment—especially African American enrollment—in selective institutions will decrease further. Some early reports post-2023 show declines at specific universities. Schools that lose affirmative action tend to see fairly rapid changes in the demographic composition of their incoming classes. 

Broader Impacts: African-American Enrollment, Financial Burden, and What Could Come Next

Impact on African-American Enrollment

With the removal or suspension of race-conscious scholarships, African-American students may face higher hurdles to affordable access. The data suggests:

  • A decline in the overall portion of Black students in postsecondary enrollment in recent years. For example, from ~13.4% in 2015 to ~12.5% in 2022 for degree-granting institutions. 
  • In selective institutions especially, early reports show Black enrollment dropping in the immediate freshman classes after 2023. Schools that lose affirmative action tend to see fairly rapid changes in the demographic composition of their incoming classes. 

Financial Burden and Inequality

Race-based scholarships like the Brooks Scholarship helped reduce the gap in cost burden. When such scholarships disappear:

  • Students from underrepresented groups may be forced to rely more heavily on loans or work to afford college, increasing financial stress and potential debt. The case of Elijah Brown illustrates this: the scholarship allowed him to graduate with honors without working multiple part-time jobs. 
  • Without race-conscious aid, need-based aid and merit scholarships may not fully compensate, because many underrepresented students not only have financial need but also face systemic barriers that race-conscious scholarships helped to partially address.

What Could Come Next: Policy Alternatives & Legal Pressures

Some universities are turning to race-neutral criteria: socioeconomic status, geographic disadvantage, first-generation status, etc. These are sometimes more legally defensible under current precedents. However, research suggests that these criteria do not always produce the same levels of racial diversity that race-based policies did. 

There is ongoing legal ambiguity: how strictly should race be excluded from any scholarships? Are donor agreements that specified race invalid? How will states interpret or enforce the Supreme Court ruling?

Some institutions may establish scholarship programs that achieve similar goals without explicitly using race – for example, by targeting low-income students, students from certain high schools, or students from rural or disadvantaged areas.

Conclusion

The elimination of race-based scholarships such as the George C. Brooks Scholarship at Mizzou represents a significant shift in higher education policy following the 2023 Supreme Court ruling. While race-conscious aid is being dismantled in many places, there remains an urgent policy question: How can colleges and universities maintain access, affordability, and racial diversity without violating legal constraints?

The trends show that African American enrollment has already begun to decline in many contexts, and the financial burden on underrepresented students is likely to increase. If institutions do not adapt with robust alternatives — whether through scholarship redesigns, state policy interventions, or increased need-based aid — the promise of diversity and equity in higher education risks further erosion.