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Williams
Authors Article Concluding North Carolina’s Diversity Scholarships Are
Unconstitutional
August 5, 2004 -- WILMINGTON, NC -- CHESS President Mark Williams
authored “Skin Formulas Belong in a Bottle: North Carolina’s Diversity Scholarships
are Unconstitutional Under Grutter
and Gratz.” The article appeared in the Summer
2004 edition of the Campbell Law Review.
The Campbell Law Review is published by the Norman Adrian Wiggins
School of Law.
The article notes that
financial aid is the new affirmative action battleground. It explores whether North Carolina’s diversity scholarships
are constitutional in light of two recent United States Supreme Court
decisions involving the University of Michigan. It highlights the history of the North
Carolina Minority Presence Grant Program and other state funded race-based
scholarships. In 2002, the North
Carolina State Legislature ended a 24 year old scholarship program that had
assisted African-American students and other racial minorities. Lawmakers used these funds to create a
new program which sets aside funds for Native Americans and requires other
funds be used to promote student diversity at the sixteen four-year public
universities.
The study explores how
four UNC institutions have implemented the legislative requirements. The University of North Carolina at Wilmington, Appalachian State University,
the University of North Carolina at Asheville and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are discussed in detail. Many of these schools have expanded
their definition of diversity to include students’ sexual orientation
and religious beliefs.
Williams questions
whether these new diversity factors will be genuinely considered since he
could not find evidence that the schools were actually collecting this
information. The study ultimately
concludes that North Carolina’s new law and the approach
implemented by the University of North Carolina System is unconstitutional.
The article is available
from LexisNexis® or WestLaw® using the citation “26 Campbell L. Rev. 135”. LexisNexis® and Westlaw® are
online legal research services and their marks are owned by the LexisNexis Group
of companies and by West, respectively.
More Information
About Center for Higher Education Support Services, Inc.
The Center for Higher
Education Support Services, Inc. (CHESS, Inc.) provides high-quality
financial aid management consulting services to colleges, universities, and
student financial aid industry participants. CHESS's areas of expertise include
financial aid management, policy, systems, training and support and people services. For additional information,
visit www.chessconsulting.org.
Mark Williams is
currently in his final year of law school at the Norman Adrian Wiggins School
of Law in Buies Creek, North Carolina. He is also an instructor in the
College Counseling Program at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). Williams previously served as the
Director of Financial Aid & Veterans Services at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and as the Associate Director of
Financial Aid at Appalachian State University.
DISCLAIMER: Mr. Williams is not licensed to practice law in any
jurisdiction. Neither CHESS, Inc.
nor Mark Williams provide legal advice.
Contact an attorney licensed to practice law in your state if you have
questions concerning this research article.
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