The AAMC joined with the American Council on Education and more than 30 other higher education groups to file an amicus brief in the case of Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, urging the federal district court in Massachusetts to dismiss the case.
The brief notes that decades of Supreme Court precedent permit institutions of higher education to consider race as one of many factors in considering each applicant for admission. Long-standing precedent also recognizes that a diverse student body is essential to educational objectives of colleges and universities, and that each institution should be allowed to exercise its academic judgment to determine the diversity that is necessary to achieve its own mission.
The Students for Fair Admissions organization alleges that Harvard University discriminated against Asian-Americans and is seeking to prevent colleges and universities from using race as part of their holistic review of applicants. The trial is slated to begin in mid-October.