Four Texas-based companies – American Airlines, Dell Technologies, Match Group and Shell USA – have signed U.S. Supreme Court amicus briefs supporting universities’ efforts to have a diverse student body.
The four companies are supporting Harvard University and the University of North Carolina, which have been sued by Students for Fair Admissions, an organization that claims that Asian Americans are being discriminated against when colleges consider race or ethnicity as a factor in admitting students.
The universities counter that race is merely one of several factors in the admissions process. Harvard, for example, points out that the percentage of Asian American students accepted at the school has risen from 17 percent to 21 percent during the past decade.
American, Dell, Match and Shell are among 82 corporations in the U.S. to sign the two amicus briefs. Other companies include Google, Apple, American Express, General Electric, General Motors and PayPal. Combined, the 82 businesses employ more than five million people and have more than $3 trillion in annual revenue.
“Strong evidence supports the insight, confirmed by amici’s experience, that university students who study and interact with diverse peers, and particularly with racially and ethnically diverse peers, exhibit enhanced cognitive development necessary for a wide range of skills highly valued in today’s economy,” the brief states. “Students of all racial backgrounds benefit from diverse university environments … Building a diverse classroom experience is how to turn out the most informed critical thinkers.
“Classroom diversity is crucial to producing employable, productive, value-adding citizens in business,” the brief by the companies state.
While only four Texas companies signed onto the briefs, nearly two-dozen corporations from California and the New York area are amici.