In protest of what he called a "black quota system" in determining board membership, Undergraduate Judicial Board Co-chair Martin Green resigned from his position Monday.
Green said in particular that the board--which hears cases of academic dishonesty and misbehavior--had accepted an unqualified candidate based solely on his race, but administrators disagreed, explaining that they chose deserving candidates that reflect the makeup of the student body.
Of the 38 applicants, three were black men, Green said, adding that two had to be immediately disqualified. The third, he said, was a candidate whose application was markedly sub-par, in comparison with other candidates.
"I resigned because it has become apparent to me that the University is using a racial quota system in the admission of new members, and I thought that was untenable," Green said.
Kacie Wallace, associate dean for judicial affairs, declined to comment on specific applicants but said she felt the board's new members are all qualified.
"I think we pay very close attention, and I feel very strongly about having a board that includes peers of students and is representative of the student population," she said. "We have selected a board in which every applicant is qualified, and we do take into consideration the makeup of the board."
Green, president of the Duke Conservative Union, insisted that the University is promoting a double standard. He said that because he felt there were other more qualified candidates, who had scored better on the written application, administrators accepted the student because of his race. He said white candidates for whom Wallace and co-chair Brandi Freeman had similar reservations were dismissed summarily.
Freeman, president of Duke's NAACP chapter, said she was saddened by Green's resignation. She said diversity was a very important quality and that the student in question was not unqualified for the job.
"In terms of what the board is doing, it's working to fulfill its obligation to the student body," she said. "That's our goal."
Several weeks after the board had announced its search for candidates, it sent another e-mail to the Black Student Alliance March 25 with the subject line "ATTENTION BLACK MALES" inviting students to apply.
Wallace said she regretted the e-mail only went to one student group.
"The principle of it is not inaccurate," she said. "We are looking for black males. We want to encourage black males.... One of the things I've learned through this is that next year, we need to do a better job with the information sessions."
In another e-mail sent the same day, Wallace told Freeman and Green it may be best to proceed without taking further applications.
"I think we need to go ahead and accept [the student], publish the list and then if we get some additional folks, we can add them," she wrote.
"I am hoping to avoid some sort of public backlash here."
Green said that soon thereafter, Wallace and Freeman decided to accept the student.
Larry Moneta, vice president for student affairs, said he saw three guiding principles in establishing a judicial board: campus accountability, student self-governance and diversity.
"The University itself is accountable for ensuring policies are followed, ultimately responsible that the methods of adjudication are fair," Moneta said. "To a maximum extent, students should be self-governing their own lives... and we also have a principle of diversity and broad representation [so that] all members of the community feel like they are part of the community."
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