Supreme Court to Revisit Affirmative Action in College Admissions

Written by: Keith Koons on Feb 21, 2012 at 9:27pm EDT

The Supreme Court decided today that they will go ahead and take another look at affirmative action within state college admission policies.  For those of you who do not remember the landmark case in 2003, the court decided in a 5-4 vote that it was okay to give special consideration to minority students that may not otherwise qualify to apply.  A heated debate about the morality and ethics behind such a policy has literally ensued ever since and with a new lawsuit in Fisher v. Texas, the highest court in the land will receive a chance to re-examine if segregation within colleges violates the Constitution of the United States.

Legal Precedence for Original Ruling

In 2003, Grutter v. Bollinger was a similar case that took a close look at Michigan Law School and the petitioner Grutter, who was a white female with a 3.8 grade point average and a 161 LSAT score.  Grutter sued the university on the grounds that she was discriminated against due to her race.  The University of Michigan countered by stating that the diversity within their student body was a more important factor than just test scores alone and the Supreme Court ultimately agreed.  Once Fisher v. Texas was introduced several years later, the lower courts also ruled in favor of the college due to precedence.

Before the 2003 ruling, several other Supreme Court cases have taken a similar look at the topic of segregation and it has been a widely controversial topic throughout the ages.  Many felt that it was only a matter of time before this topic reached the highest court once again.

Executive Intervention

This time around, the Obama administration actually felt compelled to intervene on behalf of the University of Texas to squash this case within the lower courts-  The “university’s effort to promote diversity is a paramount government objective,” a brief from the Obama administration recently said. “The question is not whether an individual belongs to a racial group, but rather how an individual’s membership in any group may provide deeper understanding of the person’s record and experiences, as well as the contribution she can make to the school.”

Likewise, the University of Texas also objected to the Supreme Court’s decision to accept this case because its ruling could reverse the precedence set almost nine years ago in Grutter v. Bollinger.

The Upcoming Battle

While the argument for and against segregation within state colleges will likely be largely the same this time around, the participants now face a much more conservative court that experts predict will return a ruling in favor abolishing segregation in all colleges.

“I hope the Court will decide that all future UT applicants will be allowed to compete for admission without their race or ethnicity being a factor,” said Ms. Fisher, one of the co-plaintiffs in this case.

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