When two white women were denied admission to the University of
Michigan in the mid-1990s, the questions surrounding the use of
affirmative action in college admissions was brought to the Supreme
Court and came into the national spotlight.
The two plaintiffs claimed they had been denied entrance to the
university in favor of minority applicants due to the substantial
weight the school put on race in their admissions process.
In 2003, several years after the two women were rejected, the
Supreme Court found that race was an acceptable factor to use in
admissions, though to a lesser degree.
“The court made clear … that it considers diversity a
compelling interest,” law Professor Richard Sander said.
The ruling had no legal impact on University of California
admissions, as California voters had already passed Proposition
209, banning the use of affirmative action in the state’s
public institutions, said law Professor Gary Blasi.
But some speculate the ruling may call into question the
state’s current policy.
Sander said that though the Supreme Court ruling does not
conflict legally with California law, the ideological conflict may
spur a change in state practices in the long run.
“Here’s … the highest court in the land basically
making the decision that appears in conflict with what our state
practices are,” education Professor Mitchell Chang said.
While the ruling may raise uncertainties for California, it has
answered some questions for other universities in the nation.
“I think many institutions were kind of on the fence …
before the decision,” Chang said.
He added that the ruling has pushed some of these institutions
toward affirmative action.
“It gives all those institutions a green light to continue
to use race (in admissions),” Chang said.
Rather than spurring a radical change in admissions policies,
Chang said the decision prevented a backward step of
universities.
“Now that the court has made a decision, we know that
there isn’t going to be a steep drop … in minority
admissions,” he said.
With the passage of Proposition 209, some thought the banning of
affirmative action was spreading across the country, but the
Supreme Court’s decision made it clear that would not happen
any time soon.
But when the ruling was passed in 2003, it was not meant to be
the final word on affirmative action and college admissions, and
the issue will doubtlessly come before the Supreme Court again in
the coming decades, Chang said.