On March 28, 2003 the U.S. Department of Education (ED) issued a report titled "Race-Neutral Alternatives in Postsecondary Education: Innovative Approaches to Diversity." The purpose of this report is to describe a number of race-neutral approaches that postsecondary institutions across the United States are using. This staff assessment by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights examines "Race-Neutral Alternatives" in light of the Commission's prior analyses, findings, and conclusions. ED stated that the "Race-Neutral Alternatives" document consisted of program descriptions, rather than best practices examples, and the report provides no criteria on which the programs are judged. The most the document can do is list programs that might work; it does not in fact provide alternatives. The greatest weakness of the report is that it ignores the growing body of research that challenges assertions that some of the programs are viable substitutes for affirmative action. (Contains 50 endnotes.) (SLD)