Montgomery County schools face Supreme Court review over magnet admissions

The U.S. Supreme Court announced Monday it would review a case about whether the Montgomery County Public Schools’ admissions policy for magnet programs denied opportunities to Asian American students.

The justices will consider the sort of statistical evidence required for cases involving accusations of racial discrimination in school admissions.

“It’s going to resolve a really important question on how to prove these claims nationwide,” said Pacific Legal Foundation senior attorney Chris Kieser.

This is the second time in recent years that the school district’s policies have come before the Supreme Court. It follows the justices’ 2023 decision to strike down race-conscious admissions programs at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina.

The current case began in 2020, when a group of parents formed the Association for Education Fairness and sued over changes to the district’s admissions process for four magnet middle school programs.

The group alleged that the “changes were targeted to reduce the percentage of Asian-American students who enroll in the magnet middle school programs, with the ultimate goal of racially balancing these schools according to the racial demographics of Montgomery County.”

They argued that the new entrance criteria were intended to reduce Asian American enrollment in violation of the Equal Protection Clause.

“The Constitution protects students as individuals, not as members of a racial group,” Kieser said. “A school district should not be able to defeat a discrimination claim by showing that its policy did not harm enough Asian American children. Every family deserves admissions rules that judge their child on their own merit.”

MCPS spokeswoman Liliana López emphasized in a statement that the court will not be evaluating the specific details of the district’s magnet programs.

“Rather, the Court will address a purely legal question and decide what plaintiffs who challenge race-neutral admissions criteria on their face must establish to demonstrate discrimination,” she wrote.

López said the district is committed to providing students with equitable access.

“This commitment will continue uninterrupted as the judicial process proceeds,” she wrote.

Several civil rights organizations on Monday decried the court’s decision to review the case.

“We are disappointed that the Court has agreed to take up a challenge to a policy designed to ensure that all students have a meaningful opportunity to access an excellent public education,” read a statement from the Legal Defense Fund and other groups.

An amicus brief filed by the Montgomery County branch of the NAACP, along with other groups, argued MCPS’ admissions reforms didn’t violate the Equal Protection Clause. They instead described the changes as important steps toward addressing the longstanding underrepresentation of Black and Hispanic students in magnet programs.

“This lawsuit aims to deter school systems across the country from pursuing such beneficial measures — even when they are urgently needed,” it reads.

MCPS was unsuccessful the last time it appeared before the Supreme Court. The justices sided with a group of religious parents who sought the right to opt-out of lessons that included LGBTQIA+ storybooks.

That legal battle cost the district more than $6 million.

This story will be updated.