Affirmative Action and Racial Equity: Considering the Fisher Case to Forge the Path Ahead

253 Pages·2015·1.027 MB·English

by  Uma M. Jayakumar, Liliana M. Garces

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION AND
RACIAL EQUITY
The highly anticipated U.S. Supreme Court decision in F isher v. University of Texas
placed a greater onus on higher education institutions to provide evidence supporting
the need for affi rmative action policies on their respective campuses. It is now more
critical than ever that institutional leaders and scholars understand the evidence in
support of race consideration in admissions as well as the challenges of the post-F isher
landscape.
This important volume shares information documented for the F isher case and pro-
vides empirical evidence to help inform scholarly conversation and institutions’
decisions regarding race-conscious practices in higher education. With contributions
from scholars and experts involved in the F isher case, this edited volume documents
and shares lessons learned from the collaborative efforts of the social science, educa-
tional, and legal communities. A ffi rmative Action and Racial Equity is a critical resource
for higher education scholars and administrators to understand the nuances of the
affi rmative action legal debate and to identify the challenges and potential strategies
toward racial equity and inclusion moving forward.
Uma M. Jayakumar is Associate Professor of Organization and Leadership at
the University of San Francisco and Faculty Associate at the Institute for Social
Research at the University of Michigan.
Liliana M. Garces is Assistant Professor of Higher Education and Research Asso-
ciate in the Center for the Study of Higher Education at the Pennsylvania State
University.
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AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
AND RACIAL EQUITY
Considering the Fisher Case
to Forge the Path Ahead
Edited by Uma M. Jayakumar
and Liliana M. Garces
with Frank Fernandez
First published 2015
by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
and by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2015 Taylor & Francis
The right of the editors to be identifi ed as the authors of the editorial
material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted
in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and
Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced
or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means,
now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording,
or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in
writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice : Product or corporate names may be trademarks or
registered trademarks, and are used only for identifi cation and explanation
without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Jayakumar, Uma M.
Affi rmative action and racial equity : considering the Fisher case to
forge the path ahead / by Uma M. Jayakumar and Liliana M. Garces.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Affi rmative action programs in education—United
States. 2. Universities and colleges—United States—Admission.
3. Discrimination in education—Law and legislation—United States.
4. Minorities—Education (Higher)—United States. 5. Educational
equalization—United States. 6. Universities and colleges—Admission—
Law and legislation—Texas. 7. Affi rmative action programs in
education—Law and legislation—Texas. 8. University of Texas at
Austin—Trials, litigation, etc. I. Garces, Liliana M. II. Title.
LC213.52.J39 2015
379.2ʹ60973—dc23
2014041359
ISBN: 978-1-138-78535-9 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-138-78536-6 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-76784-0 (ebk)
Typeset in Bembo
by Apex CoVantage, LLC
We dedicate this volume to the brave students who took
collective action to raise awareness about racial discrimination
and tokenism that persists at many of the nation’s highly selective
institutions. These student groups include: Being Black at
University of Michigan (BBUM) ; The Black Bruins at the
University of California, Los Angeles ; and “I too am Harvard.”
These students reclaimed their visibility and named the racial
isolation experienced by many students of color at institutions with
low racial representation. The experiences they share and their
courage inspire us to advocate for race-conscious admissions and
racial equity in higher education.
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CONTENTS
Foreword by Gary Orfi eld ix
PART I
Background and Evidence Submitted 1
1 The Legal Context and Social Science Evidence in F isher
v. University of Texas 3
Liliana M. Garces
2 Leadership, Citizenship, and Civic Capacity: The Imperative
of Racial Diversity for Realizing Higher Education’s
Public Mission 21
Susan Sturm and Olatunde C. A. Johnson
3 The Promise of Diversity in Remedying the Harms of
Identity-Related Threats and Racial Isolation 42
Allison S. Elgart, Victoria C. Plaut, Nicole Arlette Hirsch,
and Eva Jefferson Paterson
4 Tejas Es Diferente: UT Austin’s Admissions Program in Light
of Its Exclusionary History 63
Tomiko Brown-Nagin, Lani Guinier, and Gerald Torres
5 Access and Diversity at the University of California in
the Post-Affi rmative Action Era 80
Michal Kurlaender, Elizabeth Friedmann, and Tongshan Chang
viii Contents
PART II
Lessons and Strategies Moving Forward 103
6 The Mismatch Myth in U.S. Higher Education: A Synthesis
of Empirical Evidence at the Law School and
Undergraduate Levels 105
William C. Kidder and Richard O. Lempert
7 Amplifying Asian American Presence: Contending With
Dominant Racial Narratives in Fisher 130
Mitchell James Chang
8 From Access to Outcomes: Considering the Texas Top Ten
Percent Plan and Its Relationship to Student Persistence 150
Catherine L. Horn and Stella M. Flores
9 Walking the Diversity Rationale Talk: A Call to Institutions 165
María C. Ledesma
10 Refl ections on the Diversity (Rationale) Literature: Examining
the Potential and Need for Critical Diversity Research Praxis 186
Uma M. Jayakumar and Annie S. Adamian,
with Mitchell James Chang
A fterword: Working Collectively Toward Racial Equity in
Higher Education Policy 210
Uma M. Jayakumar and Liliana M. Garces
Contributors 219
Index 225
FOREWORD
Researchers and the Legal Struggle
Over Affi rmative Action
This book is about the work recently produced in the research and legal commu-
nities to support affi rmative action in a major confrontation before the Supreme
Court, as well as what researchers wish they could have explained to the Court
or hope they can further develop in future battles over the issue. The work was
triggered by a major case that came to the Supreme Court in 2012, F isher v. Uni-
versity of Texas (2013). The chapters refl ect the work carried out in the intellectual
world to provide a solid research base for the debate over preserving and expand-
ing diversity on the highly selective postsecondary campuses that are central to
preparing American leaders and developing new knowledge and understanding
in our society.
The work in this book answers important questions in the existing debate
over the future of affi rmative action, addressing major themes in the dominant
arguments. Some sections discuss what the authors posit would be a deeper, more
accurate way of discussing the historic and current dimensions of this battle. Col-
lectively, the chapters in this book bring us right into the heart of an intense
ongoing battle over integration policies in our leading colleges and universities.
Some chapters focus on the immediate decisions pertaining to the survival or
rejection of affi rmative action; others concentrate on longer-term issues of dis-
course and analysis about a society in transformation.
Social conditions and the specifi c context of legal disputes within the Supreme
Court in a time of retrenchment of civil rights are important for understand-
ing the potential value and impact of various arguments made within this book.
Both the value and impact relate either to the specifi c legal context of this case
before these justices or to the broader discourse in the academic world and in
the country. Given that the issues and politics of F isher will continue, this book
provides important arguments, empirical fi ndings, and perspectives that can be