Seattle U president: ‘Unanswered, unsettled questions’ on affirmative action after SCOTUS ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling effectively ending affirmative action in college admissions, and now, local universities are left trying to figure out what that means for them moving forward.
The battle over affirmative action in Washington state dates back far before this week’s ruling. In 1998, a Tim Eyman-sponsored ballot initiative (I-200) was approved by voters. It banned the state from granting “preferential treatment” to any group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin related to public employment, public education, and public contracting.
Then in April 2019, the state legislature passed its own initiative to end that ban, before a referendum blocked the legislature’s measure from taking effect.
Fast-forward to June 2023, and while affirmative action admissions are still not allowed for public institutions in Washington state, there are still questions for some. Among that group is Seattle University, which operates as a private school.
“Today’s decision leaves unanswered important and unsettled questions about how the Court’s prohibition on the consideration of race in admissions interacts with our constitutional right to the free exercise and expression of our Jesuit Catholic values,” Seattle University President Eduardo Peñalver said in a written statement. “We are actively exploring the implications of today’s decisions for those questions.”
University of Washington President Ana Mari Cauce responded Thursday as well, noting that while “I-200 already bars the use of race in admissions for WA public universities, we will review the Supreme Court’s action and any impact on the UW.”
“Yet our mission remains the same,” she added, “to create an environment of opportunity and belong for all our students.”
At the national level, President Joe Biden criticized the high court’s decision, saying that the nation’s colleges “should not abandon their commitment to ensure student bodies of diverse backgrounds and experience that reflect all of America.”
