Trying to attract a diverse group of students despite being barred from using affirmative action programs, public and private colleges and universities in Texas are banding together to create a commission on diversity. The Texas Higher Education Coalition previously worked on funding issues. This is the first time it has addressed this topic and formed a committee to do so, Monty Jones of the University of Texas System said Tuesday.
Affirmative action is off the table.
The federal courts have taken it off the table. Carol McDonald, president of the Independent Colleges and Universities of Texas, said the private schools that make up her group have the same concerns expressed by public institutions. The case is known as Hopwood, after Cheryl Hopwood, one of four white would-be students at the University of Texas law school who challenged the admissions policy in use when they applied. That 1992 policy, meant to boost black and Hispanic enrollment, was struck down by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals as discriminatory against whites. The U.S. Supreme Court allowed the ruling to stand.