advocacy.collegeboard.org
In 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court resolved the issue that had been the subject of contentious litigation and debate for decades: whether the educational benefits of diversity could ever justify the limited consideration of race or ethnicity when conferring educational opportunities, such as in admission and financial aid decisions.
Their answer, affirmed by all nine justices of the Court only four years later, was a clear "yes." The resulting central questions for higher education institutions are:
- Are diversity interests central to their ability to achieve their education goals?
- If so, how should those interests be framed and pursued as a matter of institution-specific policy?
The Access & Diversity Collaborative was established in the immediate wake of the Supreme Court decisions in the University of Michigan cases to help institutions address these questions. The collaborative provides policy and legal guidance on diversity-related issues through national seminars, numerous policy briefs and manuals that address key strategic planning and policy development issues.
