Affirmative Action and Racial Equity

Uma M. Jayakumar is Associate Professor of Organization and Leadership at the University of San Francisco and Faculty Associate at the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan. Liliana M. Garces is Assistant Professor of Higher Education and Research Associate in the Center for the Study of Higher Education at the Pennsylvania State University.

"Jayakumar and Garces bring together a breathtaking collection of essays that compellingly reveal not merely the educational, legal, and social contexts of the Fisher case, but also the contested and compromised work of strategizing responses that are both driven by larger visions of equity even while situated in ever-evolving contexts. Affirmative Action and Racial Equity is crucial for justice work, not only in higher education, but also in education more broadly." --Kevin Kumashiro, Dean of the School of Education, University of San Francisco "This important volume is not only about affirmative action; it is also about the future of higher education. The scholars in this book look at the continuing legal battle over affirmative action as policy and offer a perspective on diversity that imagines a promising path toward racial equity. A must-read for higher education scholars and leaders alike."--anthony lising antonio, Associate Professor of Education, Stanford University"Drawing from a wide range of empirical evidence providing testimony to the harms associated with racial isolation in fully achieving the educational benefits of diversity for all students, the essays highlight the broader societal mandate we face as we contemplate a world that is at risk of leaving too much talent behind by failing to educate those who can lead this diverse nation forward. A very well done and timely assessment of a pressing global mandate." --Nancy Cantor, Chancellor, Rutgers University-Newark

• Foreword by Gary OrfieldPart 1: Background and Evidence Submitted Chapter 1: The Legal Context and Social Science Evidence in Fisher v. University of TexasLiliana M. Garces Chapter 2: Leadership, Citizenship, and Civic Capacity: The Imperative of Racial Diversity for Realizing Higher Education’s Public MissionSusan Sturm and Olatunde C. A. JohnsonChapter 3: The Promise of Diversity in Remedying the Harms of Identity-Related Threats and Racial IsolationAllison S. Elgart, Victoria C. Plaut, Nicole Arlette Hirsch, and Eva Jefferson PatersonChapter 4: Tejas Es Diferente: UT Austin’s Admissions Program in Light of Its Exclusionary HistoryTomiko Brown-Nagin, Lani Guinier, and Gerald TorresChapter 5: Access and Diversity at the University of California in the Post-Affirmative Action EraMichal Kurlaender, Elizabeth Friedmann, and Tongshan Chang Part 2: Lessons and Strategies Moving ForwardChapter 6: The Mismatch Myth in U.S. Higher Education: A Synthesis of Empirical Evidence at the Law School and Undergraduate LevelsWilliam C. Kidder and Richard O. Lempert Chapter 7: Amplifying Asian American Presence: Contending with Dominant Racial Narratives in FisherMitchell James ChangChapter 8: From Access to Outcomes: Considering the Texas Top Ten Percent Plan and Its Relationship to Student PersistenceCatherine L. Horn and Stella M. FloresChapter 9: Walking the Diversity Rationale Talk: A Call to InstitutionsMaría C. LedesmaChapter 10: Reflections on the Diversity (Rationale) Literature: Examining the Potential and Need for Critical Diversity Research PraxisUma M. Jayakumar and Annie S. Adamian, with Mitchell James Chang Afterword: Working Collectively Toward Racial Equity in Higher Education PolicyUma M. Jayakumar and Liliana M. Garces