'It is only a matter of time'

The law firm that won the groundbreaking Hopwood affirmative action case last year has been contacted by a state legislator - and by up to more than 70 students - about taking legal action against the University's admissions policies.

State Rep. David Jaye (R-Macomb) said he and three other representatives are spearheading a class action lawsuit against the University for its admissions and financial aid programs, which he said discriminate based on race.

"We are hoping the lawsuit will be filed later this fall," Jaye told The Michigan Daily yesterday. "It's going to be a strong lawsuit."

Since May, Jaye said more than 400 people have contacted him, Rep. Michelle McManus (R-Lake Leelanau), Rep. Deborah Whyman (R-Canton Twp.) and Rep. Greg Kaza (R-Rochester Hills), with complaints.

Associate Vice President for University Relations Lisa Baker contended that the University's admissions and financial aid policies do not violate the law.

"Our admissions practices are both legal and appropriate," said Baker, adding that the University plans to continue an agenda of maintaining diversity and will wait to see what the lawsuit claims. Baker said the University has not been officially notified of the lawsuit.

The four state legislators began a probe into the University's affirmative action policies in May, and said they received a tremendous response. They referred the potential plaintiffs to the Center for Individual Rights, the Washington, D.C. law firm that won the case of Cheryl Hopwood vs. the State of Texas.

In that precedent-setting case, the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals found that the University of Texas Law School violated the 14th Amendment when it used race-based affirmative action in its admissions decisions.

"We are currently interviewing students who believe they have been discriminated against by the U of M," said CIR's director of public relations Robert Alt, who would not comment on a specific time frame for the lawsuit.

"More people have asked us for advice from Michigan than from any other state in the country," said Michael Greve, executive director of CIR and one of the nation's top anti-affirmative action attorneys.

Greve said about 70 students who were denied admission to the University's undergraduate, law and medical schools have contacted his firm. Some of the complaints came from people who had first contacted the four legislators.

"Have we looked at these complaints? Yes, we have looked at them, like everything else. Have we above and beyond invested anything other than the time we spent talking to these people and looking at their files? No," Greve said.

"Are we prepared to represent these people? Yes, if they have a good cause. Have we made a decision? No."

Theodore Spencer, director of undergraduate admissions, said the University aims for diversity when making admissions decisions.

"Diversity is one of many factors," Spencer said. "We have for years felt it is important to have a University that is very diverse."

Meanwhile, Jaye said he has more plaintiffs than the required three for a class action lawsuit.

Jaye, a University alumnus, said the suit organizers are "looking for people who will stay the course of the lawsuit," and they are currently narrowing down the hundreds of possible plaintiffs.

Jaye said that he is helping organize a probe into the University's affirmative action policies because when he was a student at the University in the '70s, he was appalled by the preference received by minorities.

"A number of my friends did not get scholarships and were forced to drop out because they are not minorities," Jaye said.

Whyman, another of the lawsuit's organizers, said the University's affirmative action policies are "plain and simple discrimination."

When told about the potential lawsuit, SNRE Prof. Bunyan Bryant said the University "is being dealt a serious blow."

"I feel that given the makeup of society, in the future we need to make sure there are opportunities for all people to get an education," Bryant said.

Bryant said the University's affirmative action programs not only consider racial backgrounds, but they also give priority to children of alumni, women and athletes.

"There are other kinds of affirmative action that take place," Bryant said. "The majority of people who benefit from affirmative action are white women, but the focus has been on African Americans, as if we are taking over everything.

"The race issue clouds the other affirmative action programs."

But Greve said the University of Michigan has characteristics that make it a prime target for a Hopwood-style lawsuit.

"The more competitive the institution, the more egregious the preferences are bound to be. The larger the institution, the larger number of potential victims," Greve said. "Those two factors combined explain why Michigan is more likely to be sued than any other institution."

Other local figures also argue that the University's admissions policies illegally and unfairly discriminate by race. Philosophy Prof. Carl Cohen has done extensive research into the University's admissions policies. He requested admissions figures from the University in 1995, and said he ultimately needed to use Michigan's Freedom of Information Act to obtain the data.

"Some people at the University are ashamed of the admissions policies," Cohen said.

In a report Cohen wrote based on the admission statistics, he found that minorities were given special preference in admission to various University schools.

Cohen's study compared minority and non-minority applicants with a grade point average between 2.8 and 2.99 and an SAT score between 1100 and 1190 applying to LSA in 1994. All minority applicants with those grades and scores were admitted, while 11 percent of non-minorities in that category were admitted, he said.

"Admission practices at the University of Michigan show very marked preferences by race and ethnic category," Cohen wrote in the report.

Cohen stressed that the University administrators who establish the admissions policies are not trying to intentionally cause any harm.

"The people do so with honorable ends in view," Cohen said.

LSA sophomore Maija Cirulis said that to create diversity, there are alternatives to setting separate expectations.

"Affirmative action is designed to create diversity, but the solution should be heavier recruiting, not different standards," Cirulis said.

Other students, however, said they disagree with the lawsuit.

"I definitely do not agree with (the lawsuit)," said Michigan Student Assembly President Mike Nagrant. "The lawsuit is politically motivated."

MSA Vice President Olga Savic said affirmative action is important in a University setting because it helps foster racial understanding.

"I think the University needs to keep in mind people's backgrounds when admitting students," Savic said. "Diverse backgrounds are important to maintain an open dialogue on campus."

The University's current affirmative action policies, Jaye said, are "unfair, evil and un-American."

"The U of M bureaucrats are bullies," Jaye said. "Because some students are not minorities, they don't get scholarships."

Ann Arbor-based state legislators said the lawsuit is nothing more than an effort for the involved state representatives to promote themselves.

"David will be able to milk this issue for eight years," said state Rep. Mary Schroer (D-Ann Arbor), who noted that Jaye is a potential candidate for the state Senate seat vacated after the death of Doug Carl. "We all have to suffer because of David's stupid causes."

State Rep. Liz Brater (D-Ann Arbor) said affirmative action fulfills an important role at the University, and she added that the legislators are attempting to micromanage the University. She said the state constitution specifically states that public universities are autonomous bodies and should not be regulated by the legislature.

"Every affirmative action program is attempting to address inequities," Brater said. "These representatives are grandstanding by filing this lawsuit."

But whether the lawsuit goes ahead this fall or some other time in the future, Greve said the University of Michigan is a "sitting duck" for a lawsuit.

"Sooner or later, it will happen," Greve said. "It is only a matter of time."

If you would like more information about the class action lawsuit, call Rep. David Jaye at (517) 373-0843.

We are interested in your opinions about the possiblelawsuit against the University. If you would like to share your views, please e-mail: lawsuit.letters@umich.edu before Sunday at 4 p.m. Letters may be published, either in part or in whole, in The Michigan Daily.

09-05-97