Ending Admissions Discrimination with Stanford Law:

In the process of applying to my local competitive public High School (GECA), I encountered a discriminatory and illegal policy in the application. Despite being a Straight “A” student in the Gifted and Accelerated Program (“GATE”) (with a 3.95 GPA/ approximate 4.8 GPA (weighted)), successfully completing two college level Ivy League philosophy courses, and consistently scoring in the 99th percentile in reading (see  PDF), I was required to take extra, unlawful, burdensome measures in order to apply simply because I was on an IEP for speech.

 

However, instead of submitting to this illegal policy, I decided to partner with Stanford Law School and the Youth Education and Law Project’s (YELP) Director, Prof. Bill Koski and Abigail Trillin (pictured), to challenge it on behalf of not just myself, but other similarly situated students whose busy families may not be able to read or understand the complicated requirements.

 

This policy forced all students on special education plans (IEPs and 504s) to complete extra steps when applying, such as disclosing confidential health information, and calling a “transition meeting” in order to get “confirmation” GECA would be an appropriate placement. These requirements created a chilling effect which made it nearly impossible for otherwise qualified students with disabilities to be admitted into GECA.  

 

I had the courage to jeopardize my own admission by refusing to comply with this unjust policy which was not only illegal, but immoral, based on my years-long study of moral and political philosophy (Rawls, Kant, Locke, Mill, etc.). This study included recently completing a course on “Justice” wherein I learned about John Rawls’ “A Theory of Justice,” where he argued that if you are in a position of power, you have an obligation to help others who are experiencing injustice or unfairness. Because of Rawls, I came to understand that even if I could get in under the policy, I could not stand idly by while my friends and classmates were blatantly denied fair treatment because of their disabilities.

 

Fortunately, GECA not only agreed to remove the unlawful requirements, but went so far as to “applaud” our “advocacy work…promoting the civil rights of all students.” For me, this experience further emphasized the importance of not just knowing what is right, but doing what is right, even in the face of uncertainty.

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