…the National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) submitted an amicus brief to the First Circuit Court of Appeals in the case of Boston Parent Coalition for Academic Excellence Corp. v. School Committee of the City of Boston. In its brief, the Association presented published position statements, articles, and policy positions in support of the Boston School Committee’s efforts to remove barriers of access and ensure greater equity for all students in the admissions process for its three exam schools.
Civil Rights Groups Submit Amicus Brief in Support of Race-neutral Admissions Policy at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology
Appellee appears to recognize that controlling precedent foreclosed a finding
NAACPLDF Amicus
of discriminatory intent, but nevertheless invited the district court to misapply the
law in furtherance of its attempt to change the law to prevent schools across the
country from removing known barriers to opportunity and adopting race-neutral,
research-based reforms to promote equality.
…Using past results as a baseline is not only improper, it is woefully misleading.
As the district court in Boston Parent correctly noted, when a racial group has been
significantly overrepresented in the prior system, “nearly any changes to the
admissions process will likely result in some reduction, if only from the law of
averages.”