Why should colleges and universities use affirmative action in admissions?
A. In June 2003, the Supreme Court issued a landmark decision on affirmative action [Grutter v. Bollinger (2003) and Gratz v. Bollinger (2003)] upholding the use of race in admissions decisions. Reiterating America’s commitment to affirmative action, the Court concluded that “effective participation by members of all racial and ethnic groups in the civic life of our nation is essential if the dream of one Nation, indivisible, is to be realized.” Affirmative action ensures that colleges and universities can identify and attract outstanding individuals from historically underrepresented groups. The diversity of our college campuses is critical to the future strength of our society and our economy. Colleges have always admitted students based upon a wide range of criteria that includes extracurricular activities and life experiences, as well as quantitative measures such as test scores. Diversity on college campuses improves the learning process for all students — male and female, regard
