The University of Michigan halted its admissions process last week until Jan. 10, in the wake of a federal court order for the state’s universities to cease using affirmative action in admissions.
On Dec. 29, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, in Cincinnati, threw out a deal that the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, and Wayne State University had worked out with a lower federal court to delay the implementation of the state’s recently adopted Proposal 2 until after the current student-admissions and financial-aid cycles.
Proposal 2, an amendment to the state constitution that voters approved in November, prohibits public institutions from discriminating against or giving preferential treatment to groups or individuals based on such factors as race, ethnicity, and gender. (“In Michigan, Ban on Affirmative Action Prompts Lawsuit,” Nov. 15, 2006.)
The universities originally requested the delay as being in the interest of fairness to all applicants.
