The Boston University College Republicans have named Nicholas Doucette the winner of the “Caucasian Achievement and Recognition Scholarship,” a satirical award meant to draw attention to what the group calls the “absurdity of race-based scholarships.”
The BUCR scholarship drew national attention before the Thanksgiving break as critics called the stunt “racist” and the state GOP sought to distance itself from the BUCR effort.
College of Engineering sophomore Doucette, who was one of only eight applicants, is not a member of BUCR but supports the group’s opposition to minority scholarships. He said he believes certain topics, including racial profiling and racial discussions, are sensitive subjects.
“It is just a very touchy subject, and I hoped [the scholarship] would open up a discussion about it,” he said.
Before the scholarship made national news, Doucette had already decided to apply after receiving a Facebook.com message from BUCR advertising the scholarship.
Doucette was asked to write two essays about his life as a Caucasian. When the scholarship sparked a media uproar, Doucette rewrote his first essay “to pertain to controversy so it addressed it more directly, and it further strengthened my argument that we are sensitive to race.”
“I thought about it, and I wrote that being a Caucasian-American just means to be an American,” Doucette said. “Any other title is irrelevant . . . American not by a skin tone but by work ethic. It’s not about being a color, it’s about being American.”
Half French-Canadian and half Polish, Doucette said he is “100 percent Caucasian.” His essay argued that “achievement” is the only quality by which people should be judged.
“Women and men are not ranked by what they are, but what they do with what they are given,” he said he wrote in his essay.
Doucette said his parents and friends congratulated him on the award and showed little concern over the contentious nature of the scholarship.
“My mom was obviously very happy because it means I am working hard,” he said. “[My parents] weren’t concerned that it was the big, controversial scholarship.”
Doucette’s roommate Sean Rice said he was “surprised” and “shocked” that the scholarship “created such an outrage nationally.” Rice said he expected discussion at BU, but not nationally.
“I just kind of feel that it is just a scholarship like any other thing,” Rice, a College of Arts and Sciences sophomore, said. “I know there is a huge controversy . . . It still is a scholarship, and it is going to good use. Nick really deserves it.”
BUCR President Joe Mroszczyk said despite suggestions from critics that BUCR had made its point and should now drop the scholarship, “from the very beginning, we were going to go through with this.”
“If we had backed down, it would have told people we thought it was wrong,” he said.
Mroszczyk said BUCR declined donations from scholarship supporters because it was a “one-time thing,” and logistically, there would not have been enough time to process donations.
“We have been really good at staying on our message,” he said. “We weren’t really sure what to expect. We didn’t have a number [of applicants] we were hoping for.”
He said BUCR plans to hold an open forum with a panel about “racial preferences” in the spring, but has not finalized any plans.
Doucette said he plans to use the scholarship to “pursue his education” and buy books when he studies abroad in Germany next semester.
“Some people probably will say some stuff to Nick,” Rice said. “I think it is kind of a shame. It is not like he is denouncing any race or anything. He applied for a scholarship he wanted to win. He didn’t apply for the scholarship to have people hate him.”
BU College Democrats Vice President Rani Woods said the issue is not about the scholarship recipient because “it was never about an individual.” BUCD also stands by its offer to the winner, suggesting the recipient donate the money to BUCD, who will match the amount and donate $500 to a worthy cause, Woods said.