Supreme Court Revisits Affirmative Action in Higher Education

In 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court in Grutter v. Bollinger affirmed that colleges and universities may consider race as a factor in making admissions decisions. Less than a decade later, it’s considering what the limits of that decision might be.

The Court recently heard arguments in a case (Fisherv. University of Texas-Austin (UT)) that challenges UT’s use of race in its admissions process. The university uses race as one factor among several in evaluating applicants, an approach it argues is consistent with Grutter. The plaintiff, however, argues that UT could achieve (and, in fact, did achieve) a diverse student body through race-neutral means, meaning that it’s unconstitutional for the university to consider race.

Specifically, under Texas law, the top 10% of each high school’s graduating class can attend an in-state public college or university of their choice. In practice, the vast majority of UT’s in-state students are admitted under this plan. The remaining applicants are evaluated on numerous factors, of which race is one.

The plaintiff claims that the top 10% provision enables UT to achieve a diverse student body without considering race. The university counters that this provision alone is not enough to achieve a “critical mass” of diversity, and the argument before the Court focused on the critical mass concept (e.g., what is it, how does one know when it’s attained, etc.).

 A decision is expected next year.