Race-conscious affirmative action programs in higher education are subject to strict scrutiny, which is the highest standard of review used by the courts to evaluate a policy's constitutionality. The courts employ a two-part test, examining whether the policy serves a compelling governmental interest (the underlying goal of the policy must be…

Employers and school admissions officials must consider several factors when making choices among applicants, particularly when faced with a need to increase selection of minority group members. Should different standards be applied to different groups? Will acceptance of less qualified applicants from one group affect the overall quality of the…

The literature on affirmative action and preferential admissions in higher education from 1970 to the present is reviewed in this annotated bibliography. The three parts focus on: (1) The Law and the Courts; (2) The Academic Community Response; and (3) The Philosophical Debate. Each section is preceded by an extensive introduction that analyzes…

This brief explores the pros and cons of three alternative approaches to college admissions policies: race-based preferences, which are backed by most Democrats; class-rank plans (admitting the top students in each high school), which is backed by the Bush administration; and economic affirmative action for the disadvantaged of all races, which…

Employers who hoped the Bakke decision would offer guidance on affirmative action programs have found that the conflict between antidiscrimination laws and affirmative action programs in employment remains largely unresolved. The Supreme Court's opinions in that case are analyzed and the questions answered and issues ignored are discussed.…

Questions whether the nation's most prestigious colleges and universities are admitting large numbers of black students who are not capable of competing with their white classmates and if admission double standards are doing more harm than good. The article is followed by editorial comments addressing the author's position on mismatching. (GR)

This legal document presents the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in the affirmative action case brought against the University of Michigan's Law School. On June 23, 2003, the Court held in Grutter v. Bollinger et al. that diversity is a compelling interest in higher education and that race is one of a number of factors that can be taken into…

Most educational institutions must meet strict legal requirements when considering race in admissions, financial aid, student assignment, and other policy decisions. Based on U.S. Supreme Court rulings, both the Equal Protection Clause and Title VI require that race-conscious policies be subject to "strict scrutiny." A court evaluates…

A federal appeals court has upheld an amendment to California's constitution that bars government agencies from granting preferences based on gender or race. The California Civil Rights Initiative, or Proposition 209, was found not to violate the Equal Protection Clause. If the ruling is not reversed, public colleges and universities will be…

The University of California Board of Regents' decision to end racial preferences in hiring, contracting, and admissions represents the most dramatic scaling-back of affirmative action policy in American higher education. The highly controversial decision is accompanied by a policy of increased outreach to low-income and otherwise disadvantaged…

The Supreme Court of the USA explains when universities may use race-based admissions policies without violating the Equal Protection Clause of the US Constitution. These rulings raise important ethical issues for universities that are presently using race as a consideration in their admissions decisions. This paper discusses some of the ethical…

The United States Supreme Court's landmark 2003 decisions in "Grutter v. Bollinger" and "Gratz v. Bollinger" firmly established that university admissions policies which are designed to promote student body diversity and which employ race in a carefully crafted selection process can withstand constitutional challenge. The Supreme Court ruled that…

This book is a defense of remedial affirmative action and an assertion that it is a policy that is a fair and workable solution to the chronic problem of racial caste in the United States. The personal narrative of the author, eighth of 10 children born to a single mother on public assistance, is combined with the discussion of American history…

Issues pertaining to the Bakke case and to college admissions in general are considered. Three major viewpoints concerning admissions are as follows: whether reserving a fixed number of seats in the entering class for designated minority candidates to programs that are federally supported violates Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; whether…

This study examined characteristics of the student bodies of highly selective and less-selective colleges and universities specifically those related to race and socioeconomic status (SES) and the possible effects of replacing race and ethnicity with SES as a method for ensuring student diversity. The study used data from the Cooperative…