BOSTON — 

A lawsuit challenging the use of race as a factor in U.S. college admissions will go to trial in Boston on Monday, when Harvard University will face accusations that it discriminates against Asian-American applicants.

The lawsuit, backed by the Trump administration, could eventually reach the Supreme Court, giving the newly cemented five-member conservative majority a chance to bar the use of affirmative action to help minority applicants get into college.

"The case is critically important as it's really about diversity at colleges all across the country," said Nicole Gon Ochi, an attorney at Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Los Angeles who supports Harvard in the case.

Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA), founded by anti-affirmative action activist Edward Blum, sued Harvard in 2014, contending it illegally engages in "racial balancing" that artificially limits the number of Asian-American students at the Ivy League school.

The U.S. Justice Department, which launched a related probe of Harvard after Republican President Donald Trump's election, has backed the group, saying the Cambridge, Massachusetts, university has not seriously considered alternative, race-neutral approaches to admissions.

Conservatives argue that affirmative action, which aims to offset historic patterns of racial discrimination, can hurt white people and Asian-Americans while helping black and Hispanic applicants.

SFFA said that its analysis of Harvard admissions data shows that Asian-American applicants are less likely to be admitted than their white, Hispanic or black counterparts.

Harvard denies discriminating against Asian-Americans, saying their rates of admission have grown significantly since 2010. Asian-Americans, who represent about 6 percent of the U.S. population, make up 23 percent of Harvard's current freshman class.

It notes that the Supreme Court has previously held that colleges have an interest in enrolling diverse groups of students and may consider race as one factor among many when reviewing applications.

The last time the nation's top court examined the issue was in 2016, when conservative Justice Anthony Kennedy joined the court's liberals to allow race to be considered in college admissions. Kennedy's replacement, Brett Kavanaugh, could be more likely to vote to bar its use.

"This is one area where there could be a significant change by replacing Kennedy with Kavanaugh," said Ilya Shapiro, a senior fellow at the libertarian Cato Institute.

The Justice Department last month opened a probe into whether Yale University also discriminates against Asian-Americans, and SFFA has a similar case pending against the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on behalf of white students.

"A student's race or ethnicity should not be a consideration in university admissions," Blum said.

It’s tough to gain admission to Yale University, and it’s getting even tougher for international students as standout students from around the world set their sights on Yale.

The Yale Dale News, the campus newspaper, takes a look at the situation here.

Read the full story here.

Ruth Chane, a computer science major from Ethiopia, writes about her experiences settling into student life at Whitman College in the U.S. state of Washington.

"The community at Whitman College made sure I felt welcomed even before I stepped foot on campus," she says.

Read her essay here.

In The Student Life, the student newspaper for the Claremont Colleges, a consortium of five liberal art colleges and two graduate schools in Claremont, California, student Rochelle Lu writes about readjusting to her Shanghai home after spending a semester in the United States.

Read the full story here.

Cedarville University in the U.S. state of Ohio says it’s got more than 140 international students representing 44 countries.

Here, the school interviews Jonathan Sutton, director of international student services. He talks about his job and the opportunities for international students on campus.

Read the full article here.

Morehouse College, a private, historically Black liberal arts college in the U.S. state of Georgia, offers a guide for international students interested in attending the school.

Among the tips to apply and thrive at Morehouse:

• Take advantage of the school’s orientation program
• Turn to the school’s Center for Academic Success for tutoring, support and more
• Immerse yourself in campus life via clubs and societies

Read the full article here.