ANN ARBOR, Mich.
University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman said Wednesday that the school will go to court to defend its efforts to promote diversity in the wake of voter approval of a ban on some types of affirmative action programs.
“Public universities are the doorways to equality in this country,” Coleman said at the Michigan Union. “And we must keep those doors open to all.”
With 99.5 percent of precincts reporting by midday Wednesday, 58.1 percent, or 2,131,488 people voted “yes” on Proposal 2, and 41.9 percent, or 1,539,431 voters, were opposed.
Coleman said she will explore legal options to defend the university’s admissions practices for the class now being reviewed for admission.
“I will not allow this university to go down the path of mediocrity. I will not stand by and let the very heart and soul of this university be threatened,” she said. “Diversity makes us strong, and it’s critical to our mission, it’s critical to our excellence — too critical to simply abandon.”
University lawyers also will consider whether Proposal 2 can properly be applied to universities, which have broad autonomy under the state Constitution.
