Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) sent letters to Yale, Princeton and Duke universities on Tuesday questioning whether the schools are complying with Supreme Court rulings on affirmative action and threatening legal action.
The letter said SFFA is “gravely concerned that these universities are not complying” with the Supreme Court's landmark June 2023 decision, Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard University, in which the court ruled that race-based admissions systems are unconstitutional. Many have become skeptical of the elite universities' admissions policies after the demographics of the Class of 2028 showed little change compared to the year before when the universities adopted affirmative action policies.
Duke University in particular reported a 6% decline in Asian enrollment this school year compared to last, which is due to ” [giving] “Racial preferences for African-Americans and Hispanics” are scheduled to be implemented in 2023. Yale University also reported a 6% decrease, and Princeton University a 2.2% decrease. (Related article: Asian enrollment surges at elite universities following race-based admissions ruling)
“We informed the Supreme Court that without explicit racial preference policies, it is impossible to achieve the 'diverse student body' that we have seen in the past,” SFFA said in a letter to Duke.[B]Based on SFFA’s extensive experience, your race numbers are not possible under true race neutrality.”
Affirmative action supporters demonstrate in front of the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, on June 30, 2023. (Photo: Olivier Douliéry/AFP via Getty Images)
In a 6-2 decision, the Supreme Court upheld SFFA's argument that racial preferential treatment in college admissions violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and disadvantages Asian American applicants.
“Please explain this discrepancy, including the new substantive race-neutral alternative you have adopted in response to Harvard,” SFFA concluded in each letter. “Without that information, we conclude that SFFA is evading the Supreme Court's ruling. SFFA is prepared to enforce its actions against Harvard through litigation. You have now been warned. Please preserve all potentially relevant documents and communications.”
“SFFA expects these universities to provide us and the public with specific and detailed information about their new admissions policies,” SFFA President Edward Blum said in a statement. “Litigation is a last resort, but it cannot be avoided.”
Brown University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) saw significant increases in Asian student enrollment in the class of 2024, with the percentage of Asian students increasing from 29% to 33% and 41% to 47%, respectively, compared to 2023. At Brown, the percentage of white students decreased from 46% to 43%, while at both institutions, the percentage of black and Hispanic students decreased by 6% and 4%, respectively, at Brown, and by 8% and 4%, respectively, at MIT.
Following the court's ruling, Harvard University increased its Asian student enrollment to 37 percent, according to the letter.
Duke, Princeton and Yale universities did not immediately respond to requests for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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