07/15/2014 // West Palm Beach, Florida , US // JusticeNewsFlash // Justice News Flash // (press release)

Washington – A federal appeals court has ruled that the limited use of affirmative action by the University of Texas is within reason for diversifying its student body. As reported by AFP, the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the school’s plan after a review of the practice was ordered by the Supreme Court.

The ruling stems from a case of a white student, Abigail Fisher, who complained that the university failed to offer her placement because of her skin color.

The court is quoted by AFP as saying in its decision, “We are persuaded that to deny UT Austin its limited use of race in its search for holistic diversity would hobble the richness of the educational experience… We find force in the argument that race here is a necessary part, albeit one of many parts, of the decisional matrix.”

The court also commented that the student’s scores were not high enough for admission to preferred academic programs she was seeking at the prestigious school and “if she had been a minority the result would have been the same.”

As noted in the report, the case may return to the Supreme Court pending Fisher’s decision on whether to appeal the ruling.

This report is provided by Justice News Flash – Washington Legal News

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