White House changes affirmative action policies

The Trump administration will encourage schools not to consider race in admissions, a move that reverses Obama-era guidelines on affirmative action. The Justice Department on Tuesday rescinded seven policy guidances from the Education Department’s civil rights division and restored Bush-era policies of race-neutral admissions, The New York Times reported.

In 2011, the Obama administration encouraged schools to implement affirmative action policies to bolster diversity. In the 2016 case Fisher v. University of Texas, the Supreme Court ruled schools may consider race as a factor in admissions, in limited ways. The new policy updates have some schools concerned about whether they will be investigated for admissions processes that incorporate affirmative action.

“The Supreme Court cases are about whether affirmative action is permissible (and they say that it is but only if you do it the right way, for the right reason),” wrote Ann Althouse, a law professor emeritus of University of Wisconsin Law School. “The executive branch decisions are about whether to encourage institutions to choose to do what they are permitted (but not required) to do.” A group of Asian-American students is suing Harvard University for discrimination. If the case ends up at the Supreme Court, a new ruling may steer the country in a different direction when it comes to affirmative action.