US Ho under prohibition in affirmative action case

News | By Janneke Adema

November 1, 2022 | Harvard and the University of North Carolina were sued in the US Supreme Court. The complainant was a student group called ‘Students for Fair Admissions’. The ruling could affect companies across the United States.

In the United States, the Supreme Court is considering two positive discrimination cases. Both Harvard and the University of North Carolina (UNC) have been sued The Washington Post reported. Complaint Party, Students Union’Students for fair admission‘, deems it illegal for institutions to include the skin color of prospective students in the admissions process. The students’ federation appealed after several lower courts ruled in favor of the institutions. Harvard and UNC emphasize that skin color is only one of many factors they consider in the admissions process.

57 percent of students are white

Harvard and UNC say they factor skin color into the admissions process so they can cater to more diverse student populations. The Washington Post writes that these institutions also use affirmative action for students from low socioeconomic backgrounds or women seeking male-dominated courses such as computer science.

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According to the Washington Post, in 2020, 57 percent of undergraduates at UNC were white, while eight percent identified as black or African American. Additionally, twelve percent are Asian and nine percent are Hispanic or Latino. At Harvard, the student body that year was 36 percent white, 11 percent black or African American, 21 percent Asian, and 12 percent Hispanic or Latino.

Not self-evident

The Supreme Court ruling could affect corporate admissions processes across the United States. Universities fear that the proportion of black and Latino students will drop if skin color or ethnic background is not allowed to be factored into the admissions process.

Highly selective institutions like Harvard and UNC are less diverse. “The situation has improved, but institutions are still not at the point where diversity manifests itself,” says University of Southern California’s Jerry Lucido. “The ability to include skin color as one of the many factors in the admissions process is important to them because it will help increase diversity in their student population.”

Socio-economic status instead of skin color

However, according to the complainant, too much weight is placed on this factor. Institutions tend to disadvantage white and Asian Americans and pay very little attention to so-called ‘skin-color-neutral’ alternatives. Additionally, it may not be appropriate to make skin color the most important decision. The use of affirmative action is already prohibited in nine states, including California, Florida and Michigan.

Universities can improve the diversity of their students by considering geographic origin and socioeconomic status. However, the effects of these methods on diversity are not unequivocal. Yet the student population at the University of California, Berkeley — where it has been illegal to include skin color in the admissions process since 1996 — is more diverse in 2020 than ever.

Average and best students

Harvard and UNC emphasize that they take a holistic approach in their admissions and use multiple factors, such as high school achievement and relevant extracurricular activities. Harvard also uses a list of ‘Notes‘, factors that can make a decisive decision if a student is on the verge of the required qualifications. The admission manual says: “Notes are relevant only with specific merit; on this basis, the Commission will not recommend an average student to the detriment of an outstanding student.

Other judges

The US Supreme Court has previously ruled on affirmative action in higher education admissions. In 1978, the High Courts ruled that companies were not allowed to use express quotas; Therefore, universities are unable to reserve a limited number of seats for students with specific backgrounds. However, this ruling allowed for positive discrimination under certain conditions.

The last judgment in this matter was in 2016. The court again ruled that positive discrimination based on skin color was permissible. However, at that time the ruling had only a minimal majority, i.e. four to three, and the composition of the court was different at that time. After that, Judge Anthony M. Kennedy retired and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away; At the time, both voted in favor of the ruling. Both judges were replaced by Donald Trump.

A ruling in the case is not expected until June or July. The Washington Post writes. Last time The European Supreme Court ruled Affirmative action in higher education two decades ago.