Leading US universities and higher education associations have defended Harvard University¡¯s race-conscious admissions process as the institution faces a lawsuit that could decide the fate of affirmative action in US academia.

In a joint amicus brief, the seven other members of the Ivy League and nine private universities said that they each have ¡°substantial experience¡± with race-conscious admissions policies and that they ¡°speak with one voice to emphasise the profound importance of a diverse student body for their educational missions¡±.

A group of 37 higher education associations, including the American Council on Education and the Association of American Colleges and Universities, filed a separate amicus brief in Harvard¡¯s favour. It claimed that the lawsuit against Harvard ¡°is nothing more than the first step in a backdoor attempt to achieve the sweeping relief sought ¨C and denied ¨C in Fisher II: the end of the consideration of race in college admissions and the restriction of a university¡¯s ability to assemble a diverse student body¡±.

The filings come as Harvard is embroiled in a lawsuit alleging that the institution discriminates against Asian American applicants.

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Students for Fair Admissions, an anti-affirmative action membership group, sued the institution in 2014 alleging that Harvard¡¯s admissions process holds Asian American applicants to a higher standard and that the institution engages in ¡°racial balancing¡±. The suit is expected to go to trial in October.

The National Association of Scholars filed an amicus brief in support of SFFA. Peter Wood,?NAS president, said that ¡°students should be admitted to colleges on the basis of academic achievement, proven ability, ambition, and commitment to learning¡± and that ¡°racial identity should play no role in determining who should or should not be admitted¡±.

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Last month, the Trump administration scrapped affirmative action policy guidelines?in a move that experts say could have a ¡°chilling effect¡± on diversity initiatives in US universities and result in the Supreme Court ¡°narrowing¡± the use of race-conscious admissions.

ellie.bothwell@timeshighereducation.com