Synopsis
of the facts of Gratz v. Bollinger
Jennifer Gratz, a white resident of Michigan, applied
to the University of Michigan as a high school senior
in 1995. Her standardized test score (25) on the ACT placed
her in the top quarter of applicants, and she had a GPA
of 3.8. In addition, Gratz participated in student council
and various other extra-curricular activities. Nevertheless,
the university denied Gratz admission. The University
of Michigan’s admissions guidelines in effect in
1995 called for the acceptance of all underrepresented
minority applicants with academic credentials similar
to Gratz’s. Both parties agree that Gratz would
have been admitted to the university had she been a minority
applicant.
From 1995 through 1997 the university admissions officers
used guideline tables or grids that reflected a combination
of the applicant’s adjusted high school GPA and
ACT or SAT score. To promote diversity, the university
utilized different grids and admissions criteria for applicants
who were members of preferred minority groups as compared
to other candidates. Michigan also set aside a prescribed
number of seats in the entering class for minorities in
order to meet its numerical target.
In 1998, the university dropped its admissions grid system
and replaced it with a 150-point “selection index.”
Admissions officers assign applicants points based on
various factors, including test scores, “legacy”
status, geographic origin, athletic ability, socioeconomic
level, and race/ethnicity. The more points an applicant
accumulates, the higher the chance of admission. Applicants
from "underrepresented" racial and ethnic groups
(African Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans) are
assigned 20 points. Scholarship athletes and students
who are economically disadvantaged also receive an automatic
20-point bonus. Geographic origin could earn 6 points,
the child of an alumnus 4 points, and an “outstanding”
admissions essay 3 points.
Gratz, and another unsuccessful white applicant, Patrick
Hamacher, brought suit challenging the legality of the
University of Michigan’s admission’s policy.
The federal district court ruled that the school’s
undergraduate admissions policy in place before 1999,
which maintained a set-aside for minorities, violated
the Fourteenth Amendment, but the court upheld the current
system, which does not use quotas and utilizes race as
a “plus.”
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