An Unfortunate Fact

At my university, every class has a register in which teachers record attendance for every single class. I know, very elementary school.

I noticed a few weeks ago that at the beginning of the register is a list with every student's name as well as their ethnic background. Perhaps I should find this upsetting, but mostly I think it is hilarious. "Well, I was going to give you a good grade, but according to the register, you are Bulgarian. Automatic 2 point deduction."

I wonder why this list exists in the first place. I can see why it might be somewhat useful for the university to know the ethnic composition of the school as a whole, but why do I as a professor need to have every student's ethnic background at my fingertips? Hmm.

Ah, Moldova, sometimes I think you have a long way to go.