BOSTON (AP) — A federal appeals court has upheld a district court decision clearing Harvard University of intentional discrimination against Asian American applicants.
Two judges on the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston rejected claims from an anti-affirmative action group that accuses the Ivy League university of imposing a "racial penalty" on Asian Americans.
The decision delivers a blow to the group, Students for Fair Admissions, and moves the case a step closer to a possible review by the U.S. Supreme Court.
The group's 2014 lawsuit alleges that Harvard's admissions officers use a subjective "personal rating" to discriminate against Asian Americans who apply to the school.
Harvard denies any discrimination.
According to the Associated Press, the judges concluded that Harvard does not place outsized emphasis on race.