Ex-Texas official questions teen’s Harvard acceptance

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A former Texas education official has tweeted at a biracial teen accepted to Harvard University asking if he was admitted based “on merit or quota.”

The Dallas Morning News reports that former Texas Board of Education member George Clayton replied Friday to Drake Johnson’s tweet announcing his Ivy League school acceptance. Clayton tweeted at the Marina, California, teen, “Congrats. Were you admitted on merit or quota?”

Johnson responded with his accomplishments, including being valedictorian of his high school. Johnson says he wanted to “civilly defuse the situation” and clearly show he was accepted on merit.

Johnson’s mother, Jeanie Johnson, says Clayton’s tweet was racist.

On Monday, Clayton apologized on Twitter for his comments and said they were “totally wrong and hugely insensitive.”

Clayton, a Republican, held the District 12 seat from 2010 to 2012. He uses the Twitter handle @SBOEDist12 despite no longer being on the board.

Johnson was accepted to 10 schools, including Cornell University and Brown University.

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Information from: The Dallas Morning News, http://www.dallasnews.com