Since 2006, the University of
Michigan has been running what
it calls a “natural experiment” in
race-neutral admissions. Following
a 2006 statewide vote that banned
affirmative action in the state’s
public universities, the University
radically shifted its admissions
procedures for the first time since
1963 by removing race from the
admission process. On Oct. 31,
the Supreme Court will hear the
lawsuits brought by Students for
Fair Admissions, an anti-affirmative
action
organization
challenging
racially
informed
admissions
practices at Harvard University and
the University of North Carolina.
In an amicus brief in support of
Harvard and UNC, the University
of Michigan argued the practice of
‘race blind’ admissions has failed.
In
the
past
16
years,
the
percentage of Black students at the
University has decreased from 7%
to 4%. The percentage of Native
American students dropped from 1
to 0.11 percent, a 90% reduction.
History of Affirmative Action:
1978-Present
In 1978, the Supreme Court ruled
against racial quotas employed by
the University of California Davis
Medical School in Board of Regents
v. Bakke. These quotas limited
the number of students from each
racial group that could be admitted
to the school. However, Justice
Lewis Powell wrote that using race
as a criteria in admissions could be
permissible if it were one of several
criteria. The Court in Bakke ruled
that using race as “one factor among
many” is constitutional under the
14th Amendment, which provides
all citizens equal protection under
the law.
In
2003,
the
University
of
Michigan Law School programs
made headlines in the Supreme
Court case Grutter v. Bollinger.
Barbara Grutter, a white resident of
Michigan and law school applicant,
sued the Law School after she
was denied admission. The court
analyzed her case using the 14th
Amendment and Title VI of the Civil
Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits
discrimination on the basis of
race
in
educational
programs
receiving Federal funding. With a
majority opinion by former Justice
Sandra Day O’Connor, the Law
School’s admissions practices were
constitutional under the Bakke
decision.
The
undergraduate
admissions practices, which utilized
a “point system” providing explicit
benefits to minority groups, were
ruled unconstitutional in Gratz v.
Bollinger, decided the same year.
University
of
Michigan
law
professor Michelle Adams said
O’Connor’s
opinion
emphasized
the “compelling state interests” of
consideration of race in admissions
practices.
“If there’s no exposure to a
wider variety of individuals and
viewpoints, those individuals are
not going to be able to lead with any
kind of authority, and it’s going to
cast doubt on the legitimacy of the
leadership class that gets created,”
Adams said.
Michigan voters passed Proposal
2 in 2006, banning all affirmative
action
in
the
state’s
public
universities. In 2014, the Supreme
Court upheld the constitutionality
of Proposal 2 in Schuette v. Coalition
to Defend Affirmative Action.
Affirmative Action in Today’s
Supreme Court
In anticipation of the Harvard
and UNC cases, the University
of
Michigan
filed
its
amicus
brief, saying it has had difficulty
cultivating racial diversity without
affirmative action.
The amicus brief cited a decrease
in racial diversity on campus since
affirmative action was banned in
the state of Michigan in 2006. The
brief says the University supports
the consideration of race in the
admissions process.
“U-M’s
experience
thus
represents a natural experiment
in race-neutral admissions that
this Court should consider in
determining whether efficacious
race-neutral alternatives are in fact
available to Harvard, UNC, or other
institutions of higher education,”
the brief reads. “U-M’s experience
underscores
that
the
limited
consideration of race is necessary
to obtain the educational benefits of
racial diversity.”
Adams said the University’s
attempt to increase diversity and
maintain a selective admissions
process has proved difficult without
affirmative action.
The windy and chilly weather on
Thursday morning signaled that fall
arrived right on time as students and
community members gathered on
the Diag to celebrate Earthfest, an
annual event promoting sustainability
initiatives and environmental justice
organizations to the University of
Michigan community.
LSA freshman Wan Alif Zafri Bin
Wan Azmi came for the free apples
but stayed to learn more about the
different clubs and organizations.
He said he liked the integration of
sustainability into other aspects of
campus life.
“I just want to learn more about
initiatives on campus because I want
to possibly integrate it into my studies,”
he said.
Katrina Folsom, marketing and
communications specialist for the
Office
of
Campus
Sustainability,
highlighted the different projects
and initiatives sponsoring Earthfest,
including Planet Blue, the University’s
overarching
sustainability
efforts
and the School for Environment and
Sustainability. Folsom said one of the
goals of Earthfest is to reach different
members of the U-M community,
particularly given the widespread
interest on campus.
“The goal is to connect students,
faculty and staff to ways that they can
get involved in sustainability here,”
Folsom said. “We have student groups,
we have community groups, we have
campus units to help people find a way
that they can tap into their interest in
sustainability.”
U-M Facilities and Operations, one
of the booths at the event, brought
new electric lawn mowers and offered
information about the new electric
buses that the organization will be
introducing by the end of the academic
year.
“The grounds department brought
their
new
electric
equipment,”
Folsom said. “We got a whole suite of
new electric battery-powered lawn
equipment. They are quieter and have
no emissions.”
Folsom
also
discussed
ways
students can directly make an impact
by identifying ways to be more
sustainable.
“(Planet Blue) places a real emphasis
on how we’re all going to be part of the
effort toward carbon neutrality, both
institutional and individual,” Folsom
said.
Planet Blue offered apples and apple
cider while their student ambassadors
shared information on environmental
behavior and handed out free stickers
and reusable water bottles.
Michigan Dining provided snacks
made from vegetables grown on the
Campus Farm at Matthaei Botanical
Garden. Additionally, the U-M Farm
Stand held its weekly pop-up market
in front of the University of Michigan
Museum of Art.
Rackham
student
Isabella
Beshouri, co-president of the U-M
Sustainable Food Program, explained
food sovereignty and what role the
Campus Farm plays in accessibility.
“We’re bringing (access to locally
grown
fruit
and
vegetables)
to
students who might not otherwise be
able to access it and giving them power
within their food system by doing so,”
Beshouri said.
The Campus Farm Stand — a
weekly pop-up of locally grown
produce — was also present at
Earthfest and offered students a
30% discount. All proceeds to the
farm stand go to funding student-led
sustainable food initiatives. Beshouri
also mentioned that Campus Farm
is hosting HarvestFest, a sustainable
food celebration on Sept. 25.
Art
&
Design
senior
Emily
Tamulewicz,
Student
Life
sustainability intern, demonstrated
how to make paper out of recycled
materials.
As
she
constructed
lilac-colored paper for the crowd,
Tamulewicz said being sustainable
also involves being creative.
“It’s exciting (hosting) events
that inform people about what they
can do to decrease waste, whether
it’s fun crafts or a lot of composting,”
Tamulewicz said. “We work a lot with
the University as a whole as well to
promote these ideas.”
LSA
sophomore
Elizabeth
Guenther also took part in the fun,
sipping apple cider and collecting free
stickers. She said she appreciated the
relaxed and educational atmosphere
of Earthfest.
“A lot of the clubs pressure you
(to join),” Guenther said. “But I feel
like everyone here is more about
educating people and letting people
know about opportunities to help in
the community and putting awareness
out.”
LSA freshman Archana Chandran
said she is always surprised when
something new happens at the Diag
and was not aware of Earthfest taking
place on Thursday. But Chandran
said she was happy to check out the
different clubs and learn about the
programs the University offers.
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News
2 — Wednesday, September 28, 2022
PHOTO OF THE WEEK
Earthfest returns to Diag, promotes awareness
of sustainable initiatives on campus
CAMPUS LIFE
Here’s a breakdown of affirmative action ban
at UMich, pending Supreme Court decision
KEITH MELONG/Daily
Community members celebrate sustainable student-led food initiatives at the 10th annual Harvestfest at the Matthaei Botanical Gardens Sunday afternoon.
GOVERNMENT
Planet Blue, Campus Farm Stand among those in attendance at annual event
Law experts, campus leaders discuss impact of racially informed admissions practices
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
Students and community members gather to celebrate Earthfest, an event providing a
platform for sustainability initiatives and environmental justice, Thursday on the Diag.
SYDNEY HASTINGS-WILKINS/Daily
TEAGAN STEBBINS
Daily Staff Reporter
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
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