(New York, June 24, 2013) - Today, the Supreme Court upheld the use of race in undergraduate admissions decisions, while remanding the University of Texas at Austin (UT) case back to the lower courts to determine if UT's admissions process meets the demanding constitutional standard for use of race as a consideration. Lambda Legal Director of Constitutional Litigation, Susan Sommer issued the following statement:
"We are relieved that the Supreme Court has preserved its 2003 Grutter decision and ruled to uphold the use of race in undergraduate admissions decisions. In the years since the Supreme Court's 2003 Grutter decision, racial and ethnic disparities have persisted in our nation, in such areas as education, employment, criminal justice and healthcare. Our nation's public universities continue to have a compelling interest in ensuring the diversity of their student bodies.
"Meaningful interactions among students of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds - not just the presence of some arbitrary number of minority students on a campus - yield important educational benefits for everyone. As legal advocates for LGBT people and people with HIV of all races and ethnicities, we are deeply committed to the values of diversity and fairness.
"Racial and ethnic disparities persist in our nation, in such areas as education, employment, criminal justice and healthcare. Especially given these disparities, students from varying backgrounds bring differing life experiences and perspectives to educational settings. These benefits include improved classroom experiences and learning outcomes, and better preparation for work and civic engagement later on. We are hopeful that UT's carefully crafted admission process will be found by the lower courts to further the very compelling interests it was intended to advance for all UT students."
Last year, Lambda Legal joined the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, and other allied organizations to file a friend-of-the-court brief in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin to argue that the University of Texas at Austin's use of race in undergraduate admissions decisions is lawful under the Equal Protection Clause.
Read the brief here: www.lambdalegal.org/in-court/legal-docs/fisher_tx_20120813_amicus-lambda-legal-et-al .
Statement by U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan on the Supreme Court's Ruling on Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan issued the following statement today in reaction to the Supreme Court's ruling on Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin:
"I am pleased that the Supreme Court ruling in the Fisher case today preserves the well-established legal principle that colleges and universities have a compelling interest in achieving the educational benefits that flow from a racially and ethnically diverse student body, and can lawfully pursue that interest in their admissions programs. As the Court has repeatedly recognized, a diverse student enrollment promotes cross-racial understanding and dialogue, reduces racial isolation, and helps to break down stereotypes. This is critical for the future of our country because racially diverse educational environments help to prepare students to succeed in an increasingly diverse workforce and society.
"The Department continues to be a strong supporter of diversity, and will continue to be a resource to any college or university that seeks assistance in pursuing diversity in a lawful manner."
Statement on Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, Dr. Gail C. Christopher, Vice President for Program Strategy, W.K. Kellogg Foundation
Today's U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin case maintains the opportunity for fairness and equity in college and university admissions. Those who believe in providing equal opportunities for our nation's children recognize the importance of today's outcome in ensuring, at least for now, that all capable students can pursue their dream of higher education. The Supreme Court decision orders the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to apply a standard of "strict scrutiny" when examining the University of Texas policy that considers an applicant's racial or ethnic background as a factor during the admissions process. The process the University of Texas has developed is a fair one, considering racial or ethnic backgrounds of qualified students along with academic success and other factors such as leadership, socioeconomic status and athletic or artistic skills and achievements.
The Supreme Court decision on Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin ordered the lower courts to use a tougher standard in scrutinizing the university's admission's policy, the same standard used previously in the Grutter and Bakke cases. Today's ruling could have severely limited, or ended, affirmative action in higher education. Therefore, today's far narrower ruling on a technicality should be seen as a victory for those who believe in providing equal opportunities for all Americans regardless of their race, ethnicity, gender, religion or sexual orientation.
The University of Texas admissions process looked beyond test scores to help mitigate the barriers that many students of color confront in a nation where from the moment they are born they may face conscious and unconscious bias based on the color of their skin. Throughout their lives, discrimination can adversely affects their housing, education, health and employment opportunities. All too often, children of color attend schools that have inadequate funding, that have lower quality teachers and outdated textbooks. Their parents can't afford expensive classes to prepare for the SATs. The admissions process at the University of Texas addresses these disparities by helping qualified students overcome these obstacles and have opportunities for a college education, for a better life outcome and for a brighter future.
At the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, we are committed to healing the profound gaps and inequities that exist in our country, by placing the health, education and well-being of children at the center of all we do. The majority of children born in America today are children of color. We support college admission policies that identify qualified students of all races and provide them with equal opportunities to succeed. Research demonstrates that all students benefit when the learning environment is a diverse classroom, where students of different races, ethnicities and backgrounds together learn how to excel in the global economy.
Fifty years ago, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial before 200,000 to 300,000 people at the historic March on Washington, telling the crowd, "I Have a Dream" for freedom and equality. Much progress has been made towards achieving his dream. While we would have preferred a ruling broadly upholding affirmative action in higher education admissions, today's Court ruling may help move our nation a step closer towards reaching Dr. King's dream. Under the ruling, all Americans can still benefit from programs like the one run at the University of Texas at Austin.
Statement from The Education Trust on Supreme Court's Fisher v. University of Texas Decision
WASHINGTON (June 24, 2013) — The Supreme Court's decision today in Fisher v. University of Texas reaffirmed the bedrock constitutional principle that universities have a compelling interest in considering racial and ethnic diversity as one factor in developing a carefully crafted admissions policy. Although the Court found that the Fifth Circuit applied the wrong standard, it did not question the compelling nature of diversity as a factor in admissions. Even when you control for income and other advantages, students of color are still admitted to college at lower rates than their white peers. Colleges and universities need tools to address this inequity, and today's decision ensures those tools remain available.
Even today, when a college degree is nearly indispensible for a family supporting wage, students of color are less likely to go to college and, when they do, less likely to attend the high quality institutions from which they are most likely to graduate and master the skills they need to take on leadership roles. The Supreme Court's recognition of the importance of equal opportunity in higher education leaves the door open for universities to adopt policies that further educational and social equity. The Court made clear that universities may consider racial and ethnic diversity as one factor in enrolling a class of well-qualified students. We look to the Fifth Circuit, as it reconsiders this case, to uphold these principles.
Task Force: Decision "Reaffirms Value of Diversity in America's Education System"
WASHINGTON, June 24 — The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force is welcoming the Supreme Court's Fisher v. University of Texas ruling — reaffirming the value of diversity in higher education.
"The High Court's ruling reaffirms America's inclusiveness and vision of participation and opportunity for all," said Rea Carey, Task Force Executive Director. "Learning with people from different backgrounds and perspectives benefits all students, our workforce and our nation — and people of color, particularly LGBT people of color, continue to experience discrimination and exclusion from our nation's institutions."
A chorus of voices from every sphere of American life had urged the Court not to eviscerate higher education's ability to recruit and support diverse student bodies. In states where race is no longer a factor for admission, the enrollment rates of people of color has dipped considerably.
"Affirmative action in university admissions has long served our nation's commitment to equality and justice — and we still have a long way to go to eliminate racism from our society. We hope that the Court will stand behind its affirmation of the importance of diversity as this case continues to be adjudicated."
To learn more about the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, visit www.theTaskForce.org ( www.thetaskforce.org/ ) and follow us on Twitter: @TheTaskForce ( http://www.twitter.com/thetaskforce).
