Affirmative Action Case in Texas

Posted: Aug 3, 2010 12:48 PM by Letitia Walker

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Two white students who were denied admission

to the University of Texas at Austin are asking a federal appeals

court to rule that the school impermissibly uses race in its

undergraduate admissions decisions.

A three-judge panel from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals

didn't immediately rule Tuesday after hearing arguments.

A federal judge in Austin last year dismissed the suit filed by

Abigail Fisher and Rachel Michalewicz, who were denied admission to

UT's 2008 freshman class.

The students claim UT's consideration of race in its admissions

process is unconstitutional because it pursues a representational

goal rather an educational one.

But a lawyer for the state says the policies adhere to a 2003

decision by the U.S. Supreme Court upholding affirmative action at

the University of Michigan law school.