A new Quotas Law brings important reformulations to the Brazilian affirmative policies aimed at access to higher education. Approximately ten years after the application of Law 12,711, responsible for establishing quotas at the federal level, analyzes and studies were carried out to establish the provisions of the new legislation.
There are many nuances and complexities related to this topic, but, at the same time, it is essential to understand how this law works, as it aims to shape part of the future of Brazilian education.
To better understand what is happening in this reformulation of the Quota Law, we went to talk to Marcia Lima, secretary of policies and affirmative actions, combating and overcoming racism (SEPAR) of the Ministry of Racial Equality (MIR). See what we discovered!
Consequences of the old quota policy
First of all, we asked the secretary about the consequences and discoveries made after the decade-long application of Law 12,711.
Márcia begins by explaining that what was done was a revision of the first version of the law, with some modifications. Afterwards, she cites studies and research that point to the success of the quota policy in social inclusion in several aspects, beyond the racial issue.
Márcia explains that there is confusion surrounding the quota policy, as it is not exclusively racial. In fact, initially, it separated 50% of the vacancies for public school students, regardless of ethnicity or other categories.
Within this 50%, students with a family income of less than 1.5 minimum wage per capita and students with a family income greater than that were separated.. Only after these divisions did vacancies reserved for blacks, browns and indigenous people enter., which should be proportional to the population of these groups in the states where the institution is located.
With the change, the number of public school students will increase, as they will now compete first in broad competition and only those who do not obtain approval compete within the vacancies reserved. The secretary explains that black people who do not study in public schools are not beneficiaries of the policy.
Márcia continues to state that the quota policy already implemented transformed the socio-economic and ethnic-racial profile of universities. She also said that quota students, white and black, have a notable improvement in performance throughout undergraduate courses, reducing the difference between the grades of quota and non-quota students each semester.
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Main objective of the New Quota Law
The secretary says that the main objectives of the reformulation of this law are linked to the report of the Federal Audit Court (TCU) which makes an assessment, for example, on the income criterion. Now, it is no longer in the range of 1.5 minimum wages where the division of places allocated to public schools is made, but rather 1 minimum wage per capita.
Márcia also talked about the focus on increasing the permanence of quota students. In this sense, she explains that the reformulation provides legal support for institutions create affirmative policies for postgraduate studies, but does not define how this should be done.
The secretary highlights a change and says that some universities were already practicing it, she says:
Now, all students compete for broad competition and after filling these vacancies, you fill the quota vacancies. This change helped you take advantage of students, even though they are enrolled in quotas, their performance is taken advantage of... The importance of this is that quotas stop being the ceiling and become the floor.
She also highlights the inclusion of quilombolas in quota policy. Finally, she concludes that the main objective of the quota policy is to correct a historical inequality.
Challenges for implementing the New Quota Law
We also asked the secretary about the challenges that arise in implementing the quota policy. She responds that these policies are already implemented, but that even with the adjustments, the challenge of student retention persists.
She says that it is necessary to invest in this sector, to guarantee not only access, but also the completion of higher education degrees.
Quota policies are not just about reserving places, they are also important for us to ensure that people are able to stay at university, this is one of the biggest challenges
Márcia says that, in some courses, staying is more complicated, sometimes because they are full time, sometimes because they are more expensive degrees. She also said that it is precisely in these courses where the most fraud related to the quota policy is found, carried out by phenotypically white people who are declare black.
Policies that accompany the Quota Law
To understand cow inequality is combatted in a broader way, we question whether there are affirmative actions that accompany the quota policy or whether it is applied in isolation.
The secretary says that it is necessary to understand the quota policy in a trajectory, as, there are public policies, made before 2012, that are important for reserving vacancies. She cites the Support Program for Restructuring and Expansion Plans of Federal Universities (REUNI), as he increased the resources and infrastructure of universities, in addition to taking many campuses to the interior.
She also mentioned the creation of Federal Institutes that are present in more remote cities. So, says Márcia, that quota policies are accompanied by a very large growth in education higher education in Brazil, that is, in addition to the reservation of vacancies, there is also an increase in the number of vacancies.
Márcia also comments on the Prouni, developed in 2004, which helps low-income students enter private educational institutions. Finally, the secretary highlights the increase in possibilities arising from the Enem and with Sisu and highlights permanence policies and the expansion of university scholarships carried out under the current government.
