Affirmative Action Decision Tops Higher Education News

In late June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that universities could no longer consider the race of a student when making admissions decisions.

The announcement effectively ended the idea of Affirmative Action, which had been in place in higher education and the workforce for over 50 years.

In making its decision, the court looked at cases involving Harvard University and the University of North Carolina. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote: “students must be treated based on his or her experiences as an individual – not on the basis of race.”

He noted that many who make choices about which students will be permitted to attend universities have given too much importance to the color of a person’s skin. “Our constitutional history does not tolerate that choice,” he continued.

A group called Students for Fair Admissions brought the case through the U.S. court system over a number of years. The group believed that many Asian and white students were not getting a fair chance to attend the most selective colleges and universities in the U.S. because some places were being held for Black students.