Washington Week: Student Voices (O)

Nationwide lawsuits opening up minority-only programs to all students
By Maura O'Keefe
Cavalier Daily (U. Virginia)
02/07/2006

(U-WIRE) CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — In an effort to comply with 2003 Supreme Court rulings regarding affirmative action, some universities are opening up formerly minority-exclusive programs and scholarships to all students. While such programs target a broader demographic of students, there is debate as to whether modifying or even terminating minority-exclusive programs is an appropriate reaction to the 2003 rulings.

Roger Clegg, president and general counsel of the Center for Equal Opportunity, has filed complaints against a number of universities in an effort to insure that schools comply with the rulings and scholarships and programs to all students.

"There are a lot of programs out there that are being run in a racially exclusive way, not just racially preferential, but racially exclusive," Clegg said.

"You can't even apply unless you are the right skin color. These include summer programs, internships, some scholarships and so forth. So what we have done is contact the schools who have these programs and point out that it is illegal because the Supreme Court has said that you have to 'individualize consideration' to students."

The Center's efforts began when they filed a complaint against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology about four or five years ago, Clegg said.

"We sort of stepped things up in 2003 and have continued to contact schools in a fairly steady pace since then," Clegg said. "It may have slowed down... because most schools have begun changing their programs."

A complaint was also filed against Virginia Tech in 2002, before the Supreme Court rulings, Clegg said.

Thus far, the Center's efforts have resulted in changes, Clegg said.

"Schools we have filed complaints against have generally ended up changing programs as well," Clegg said.

According to William Harvey, chief officier for diversity and equity at the University of Virginia, when schools abandon or modify such minority-exclusive programs, they do so in an effort to avoid being sued.

"I'm disappointed by [the extension of the programs to all students]," Harvey said. "I think it is a reaction that's in part taking place because there is a threat of possible lawsuit, and people are being extraordinarily cautious."

Harvey said that applying the 2003 Supreme Court rulings to these programs is an inaccurate application of the law.

"The rulings don't speak to these programs at all, they speak to admissions," Harvey said. "They said diversity is an added aspect to an environment. It's a contradiction to what they're doing."

According to Clegg, a complaint was filed against the University in 2004 on behalf of a student who was not admitted.

"A complaint has been filed against U.Va by a parent who thought that his son or daughter had been illegally discriminated against in admissions, and that complaint is being investigated by the federal government now," Clegg said. "The Virginia Association of Scholars used freedom of information laws, and we worked with them to send a freedom of information request to U.Va," Clegg said.

The Center analyzed admissions data and released a report to the education department, he said.

According to John Blackburn, dean of admissions, ethnicity can be considered as a factor in the admissions process under the law.

"There's nothing that says that race-exclusive programs for recruiting are illegal," Blackburn said. "In terms of what we're doing, we've never had any kind of admission program here that was race specific, that, in fact, would suggest that simply by being Hispanic or African-American, [a student] got in."

According to Clegg, the University does not currently sponsor programs that entail race-restrictive eligibility. "I'm not aware that U.Va has programs like this now," said Clegg.

Students supported by race-restricted programs, such as Jerome scholars, funded by the CAP Charitable Foundation, and Ridley scholars, funded by the Alumni Association, do attend the University. According to University spokesperson Carol Wood, neither of these programs is sponsored by the University of Virginia. Links to the scholarships can be found on U.Va's Admissions Outreach Office Web site.

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