Dive Brief:
- Colleges and universities across the country, both public and private, are concerned about the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to hear Abigail Fisher’s case against the University of Texas at Austin for a second time.
- The New York Times reports that some are worried their willingness to return to the case so soon after their 2013 decision to send it back to the lower courts indicates a willingness to ban race-based admissions policies.
- That outcome would cost colleges and universities significantly more money to preserve diversity on their campuses by requiring alternative outreach methods and student preparation programs.
Dive Insight:
The Supreme Court has chipped away at race-based affirmative action for the last 30 years. California, Texas, Florida, Michigan, and four other states all have bans against considering race in admissions. Colleges and universities in these states have devised various ways to maintain diversity, some by preferencing income status in admissions, others by giving greater weight to high school performance. Admissions officers are already talking about costly outreach starting at the middle school level to get students of color in underperforming schools ready for college admissions if the Supreme Court approves a wider ban. If the court goes so far as to rule race-based affirmative action is unconstitutional, it will be a problem for private colleges and universities in addition to their public school peers.