As the percentage of married students at Brigham Young University declines (only 17% in 2025), the Mormon school is organizing singles-oriented events to increase male-female interaction (Chronicle of Higher Education Daily Briefing, August 14th online).
But now, BYU has taken a step that is generating considerable controversy on campus. Its Admissions Office is actively recruiting brunette and raven-haired female students in an attempt to cater to male undergraduates who are “tired of dating blondes,” according to BYU President C. Shane Reese.
Not surprisingly, many BYU females are furious. “I am more than willing to dye my hair brown or black, but no one has ever asked me to, and wouldn’t doing that violate the ban on DEI activities?” says Stacey Smythe-Smith, a BYU junior who is captain of the Cheerleading, Field Hockey, and Competitive Jello-Mold Squads. “This sucks. My boyfriend just left me for some bikini-waxed hussy who grew up in Rio de Janeiro. Her first name is Valentina, and when she pronounces it, she does it really slow and sultry, so it takes, like, a whole minute. She does it that way just to torture me. She’s not even Mormon.”
In January 2027, approximately 75 students from Spelman College in Atlanta will use the NCAA’s transfer portal to enroll at BYU. They have all agreed to convert.