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Supreme Court accepts Maryland magnet-school admissions challenge
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Court grants review of the evidence standard for discrimination claims
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed on October 19 to hear a challenge involving admissions to four Montgomery County, Maryland, magnet middle-school programs. Its docket limits review to whether challengers alleging intentional racial discrimination under rules that do not explicitly use race must show group-wide disadvantage relative to the group’s share of applicants. Parents allege discrimination against Asian American students; the district maintains its lottery system is race-neutral. Chalkbeat reports that the district also disputes applying objections to an earlier policy to its current system. AP reports that a ruling for the parents could revive the dismissed lawsuit. Accepting review establishes neither discrimination nor replacement admissions rules.
Supreme Court docket 26-12: Association for Education Fairness v. Montgomery County Board of Education · AP: Supreme Court to hear case on race in middle school admissions · Supreme Court takes up case that could change how schools select students for magnet programs