Test Optional Policies

Timothy W. Gerken, PhD
Chair of the UFS Committee on Equity, Inclusion, and Diversity
Associate Professor of Humanities
SUNY Morrisville

The University Faculty Senate of the State University of New York, through a recently passed resolution, has asked Chancellor Kristina Johnson to join a long list of colleges and universities that have made standardized tests (i.e. SAT, ACT, GRE) optional for admissions. If adopted, SUNY would become the first system of higher education to make such a move.

While UFS resolutions do not create policy, they do advocate for positions that the body believes will benefit SUNY. The UFS resolution supports the 2015 SUNY Board of Trustees Diversity Resolution and recent guidance from Governor Andrew Cuomo, which directed the board to “reexamine” its “existing plans to ensure these plans are furthering New York’s goals of diversity and inclusion.”

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