--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Like mismatched minority students…" description: "\"“Like mismatched minority students, mismatched minority faculty have sought refuge in non-intellectual pursuits, such as community activities and campu..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb9/thomas-sowell-247_american-society_like-mismatched-minority-students-mismat_1993737.jpg" --- # Like mismatched minority students, mismatched minority… ![“Like mismatched minority students, mismatched minority faculty have sought refuge in non-intellectual pursuits, such as community activities and campus political activism, in denunciations of standards they do not meet, and in complaints about the moral shortcomings of colleagues, or of American…” quote by Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb9/thomas-sowell-247_american-society_like-mismatched-minority-students-mismat_1993737.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb9/thomas-sowell-247_american-society_like-mismatched-minority-students-mismat_1993737.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb9/thomas-sowell-247_american-society_like-mismatched-minority-students-mismat_1993737.jpg) > ““Like mismatched minority students, mismatched minority faculty have sought refuge in non-intellectual pursuits, such as community activities and campus political activism, in denunciations of standards they do not meet, and in complaints about the moral shortcomings of colleagues, or of American society in general. Given the stark alternatives of (1) losing one’s self-respect by accepting the prevailing academic standards and values, and (2) protecting one’s self-respect by repudiating those standards and values, it can hardly be surprising that many have chosen the latter. Clearly,”” [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Some individuals reject prevailing academic standards to preserve self‑respect, turning to alternative pursuits. **In simple terms:** Rejecting standards can protect self‑respect but may limit intellectual growth. Key Takeaway Balance standards with personal integrity. Themes self‑respect academic standards identity Mood critical analytical Type social philosophical When to use this quote - academic environments - career decisions - political activism - community involvement Key Concepts sociology psychology education Questions to Reflect On - Is compromising standards ever justified? - How can one maintain integrity while engaging with mainstream academia? A Different Perspective Rejecting standards can hinder professional advancement. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-society/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Minority Faculty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minority-faculty-3470787/) [Minority Students](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minority-students-1063930/) [Mismatched Minority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mismatched-minority-3470786/) [Political activism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-activism/) [Respect Repudiating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/respect-repudiating-3470789/) [Students Mismatched](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/students-mismatched-3470788/) ## Related quotes > [“It would be impossible to understand the persistence and vehemence of these arguments against test scores without understanding the political purpose they serve. 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My orchestra teacher ran a program for minority students there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-olusola/yeah-i-would-go-to-new-england-conservatory-a-lot-my-orchestra/) [Kevin Olusola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-olusola/) > [I think the minority students that we admit to Harvard are every bit as meritorious as the white students that we admit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-bok/i-think-the-minority-students-that-we-admit-to-harvard-are-every-bit/) [Derek Bok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-bok/) > [Looking out at that crowd, I imagined those who had not yet arrived, minority students who, in years to come, would make this multitude…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-sotomayor/looking-out-at-that-crowd-i-imagined-those-who-had-not-yet-arrived/) [Sonia Sotomayor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-sotomayor/) > [“Currently, “minority” students represent a majority in all but two of our twenty-five largest cities, and by some estimates, the turn of the century…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-delpit/currently-minority-students-represent-a-majority-in-all-but-two-of/) [Lisa Delpit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-delpit/) > [One thing has not changed: to doubt the worth of minority students' achievement when they succeed is really only to present another face of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-sotomayor/one-thing-has-not-changed-to-doubt-the-worth-of-minority-students/) [Sonia Sotomayor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-sotomayor/) > [By making college more affordable for all and more accessible for minority students, the first new higher education authorizing legislation in a decade will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-pelosi/by-making-college-more-affordable-for-all-and-more-accessible-for/) [Nancy Pelosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-pelosi/) > [I think, overall, there is a lack of diversity in the arts. I'm thinking about when I was in grad school: I could probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-c-moore/i-think-overall-there-is-a-lack-of-diversity-in-the-arts-i-m-thinking/) [Adrienne C. Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-c-moore/) > [“Grace deeply identified with Mead’s view that ideas evolve historically. “Unlike the average American teacher of philosophy of his day,” she wrote, Mead “urged…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/grace-deeply-identified-with-mead-s-view-that-ideas-evolve/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“The times do not call for grassroots political activism, as if the next election might be enough to reverse a massive cultural earthquake. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-d-miller/the-times-do-not-call-for-grassroots-political-activism-as-if-the/) [Paul D. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-d-miller/) ## More by Thomas Sowell > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [There is no bigger waste of time than doing 90% of what is necessary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/there-is-no-bigger-waste-of-time-than-doing-90-of-what-is-necessary/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [If you have always believed that everyone should play by the same rules and be judged by the same standards, that would have gotten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/if-you-have-always-believed-that-everyone-should-play-by-the-same/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [“In 1962, Democratic President John F. Kennedy, like both Democratic and Republican Presidents and Secretaries of the Treasury in earlier years, pointed out that “it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/in-1962-democratic-president-john-f-kennedy-like-both-democratic-and/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Ideological bigotry has become the norm on even our most prestigious campuses, where students can go for years without reading or hearing anything that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/ideological-bigotry-has-become-the-norm-on-even-our-most-prestigious/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Bailing out people who made ill-advised mortgages makes no more sense that bailing out people who lost their life savings in Las Vegas casinos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/bailing-out-people-who-made-ill-advised-mortgages-makes-no-more-sense/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [“One third of all Scots in the mid-nineteenth century moved from one county to another”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/one-third-of-all-scots-in-the-mid-nineteenth-century-moved-from-one/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [The difference is that we have the hardest and most painful evidence that there was a Holocaust. But, for the global warming scenario that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-difference-is-that-we-have-the-hardest-and-most-painful-evidence/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [“Just as price fluctuations allocate scarce resources which have alternative uses, price controls which limit those fluctuations reduce the incentives for individuals to limit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/just-as-price-fluctuations-allocate-scarce-resources-which-have/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [The greatest danger to the liberal vision are facts about the consequences of liberalism itself and the laws, policies, and ways of life that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-greatest-danger-to-the-liberal-vision-are-facts-about-the/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Having spent years ruining the housing markets with their interference, leading to a housing meltdown that has taken the whole economy down with it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/having-spent-years-ruining-the-housing-markets-with-their/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Do all children have some inherent right to live in America if they have done nothing wrong? 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