The Constitution and Racial Diversity in K-12 Education: A Legal Analysis of Pending Supreme Court Ruling in Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1 (CRS Report for Congress)
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| Release Date |
Revised July 12, 2007 |
| Report Number |
RL33965 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Jody Feder, American Law Division |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
| Older Revisions |
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Summary:
The diversity rationale for affirmative action in public education has long beena topic of political and legal controversy. Many colleges and universities haveestablished affirmative action policies not only to remedy past discrimination, butalso to achieve a racially and ethnically diverse student body or faculty. Although theSupreme Court has recognized that the use of race-based policies to promotediversity in higher education may be constitutional in two recent cases involving theUniversity of Michigan's admissions policies, the Court has never consideredwhether diversity is a constitutionally permissible goal in the elementary andsecondary education setting. To resolve this question, the Supreme Court agreed toreview two cases that involve the use of race to maintain racially diverse publicschools. Specifically, the Court will consider whether the school plans at issue violatethe equal protection guarantee of the Fourteenth Amendment. The cases are Meredithv. Jefferson County Board of Education and Parents Involved in Community Schoolsv. Seattle School District No. 1, and the Court's decision is expected to be issuedduring its 2006-2007 term. This report provides an overview of the lower courtdecisions in the two cases, coupled with a discussion of the factors that the SupremeCourt is likely to consider on review.
