Lawsuits put school in spotlight

Two lawsuits filed this semester against the University's admissions policies have put the public institution in the national spotlight.

But with increased attention comes the likelihood of both positive and negative images of the University, said Law Dean Jeffrey Lehman.

"The dominant sense is that we are doing the right thing and it is, in many ways, an honor and a privilege for us to be the spokespersons for legal education," Lehman said. "How effective we are at communicating the importance of what we do ... to the country will shape how the University is perceived."

In October, the Center for Individual Rights filed suit against the admissions policies of the College of Literature, Science & Arts. On Wednesday, CIR filed a follow-up lawsuit in Federal District Court in Detroit, claiming the Law School uses discriminatory admissions practices.

"I hope the University will be recognized for standing up for an important principle and, regardless of where one comes down in this debate, that people will respect us for defending something that is absolutely critical to our public mission of having a diverse campus," said Lisa Baker, associate vice president for University relations.

But the increased publicity also comes with dangers. During a meeting with Law students Wednesday, Lehman warned students that the media may not report accurately on the lawsuits.

"Take all that you hear with a grain of salt," Lehman said.

In addition to media distortions, public perception of the position of a university in such a lawsuit is not always accurate. In the case Hopwood v. University of Texas, which challenged UT's race-based admissions, UT's historic treatment of minorities made it difficult for the university to show the public that it embraced diversity.

Terry Wilson, UT's associate director for the office of public affairs, said many incorrectly linked the Hopwood decision to the 1950 case Sweat v. Painter, which allowed blacks into UT's graduate programs. Wilson said critics inferred that Hopwood was the university's chosen route to resegregation.

"Many people outside in the community thought we instigated it," Wilson said. "Because of the history dating back to Sweat, it didn't resonate positively with the minority community."

But Wilson said it is difficult to compare the Texas community's response to the Ann Arbor community's response because of regional differences.

"I don't think there's a direct parallel, given their different histories," Wilson said. "You have a lot of that history in Texas that you might not have in Ann Arbor."

Wilson said the University of Texas also was perceived by some people as being against affirmative action because UT Law Prof. Lino Graglia publicly denounced the university's race-based admissions. At the University of Michigan, RC Prof. Carl Cohen has vocally opposed the University's affirmative action policies and has collected information thaat he said shows admissions differences between minority and non-minority students.

"Many of the people in the public don't make the distinction between an autonomous professor ... and the position of the university," Wilson said.

But Baker said the University of Michigan is making sure the public understands its position on the lawsuits.

"We are reaching out to as many people as possible ... those on campus and off, to explain clearly and as fully as possible why we believe that a diverse student body is so important," Baker said.

But two news programs may have given the public a slanted view of the lawsuit filed against LSA admissions, said visiting communication studies Prof. Anthony Collings.

"Both ABC and NBC have done stories about the lawsuit, and in both cases the overall impression seems to be critical of the affirmative action and therefore critical of the University," Collings said.

Collings said Tuesday's ABC news piece used a "soundbite" from University President Lee Bollinger that gave the impression that Bollinger condoned discrimination.

"That's probably not the impression he wanted to convey, but it's the way it came out," Collings said.

While the NBC news piece was more detailed, Collings said, it started out with comments from plaintiff Jennifer Gratz, and didn't include the perspectives of minority students.

Collings said that in both cases, the issue wasn't dealt with in sufficient depth.

"The University's got a problem on its hands - that's what the viewer's left with," he said.

But such news coverage hasn't affected employers' desires to recruit at the University, said Kerin Borland, senior associate director of Career Planning and Placement.

"Since the lawsuit, we have seen no sign of people being adverse to the University for recruiting," Borland said, adding that the University's diverse student body is attractive to employers.

Nor has the lawsuit affected how Michigan State University uses race in the admissions process to achieve diversity.

"Institutions don't make policies and practices in regard to what's happening at other institutions," said Terry Denbow, MSU's vice president for university relations. "We look to our mission, not other institutions, to achieve diversity."

School of Art and Design Dean Allen Samuels said the additional lawsuit has not made him worry that a similar lawsuit will target his school.

"What it has done is caused us to stop and look for a minute at how we do our admissions to make sure that we believe in them and that they're positive and fair," Samuels said.

"As disturbing and troublesome as it has become, it is possible that the lawsuit will invite ... debate about what diversity means and what our admissions processes are," Samuels said. "The University of Michigan will step up and provide leadership nationally. That's always been it's role."

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