Supreme Court Rules That Race-Based Admissions Programs Are Unconstitutional

The US. Supreme Court ruled Thursday that colleges and universities cannot consider race when admitting students – a decision legal experts say will have wide ranging impacts on students, the education system and the nation’s economy. In a 6-3 decision, the court said that race-conscious admissions programs at Harvard and the University of North Carolina are unconstitutional. The plaintiffs in the case, Students for Fair Admissions, argued that Asian students in particular were discriminated against because of their race. California banned affirmative action for state university admissions in 1996 and is one of nine states with similar bans. We’ll discuss the impact of the ban on California’s students and universities, what other states can learn from attempts to diversify universities post-affirmative action and what the expansion of the ban to private colleges means for California.

Guests:

Teresa Watanabe, education reporter, LA Times

Rory Little, professor of constitutional law, UC College of Law, San Francisco

Dania Matos, vice chancellor for equity and inclusion, UC Berkeley

Michele Siqueiros, president, The Campaign for College Opportunity, which is a non-profit that seeks to help provide an opportunity to go to college for every eligible student in the state.

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