UC President Janet Napolitano, along with 10 chancellors, filed a legal brief Monday in support of the University of Texas in a case challenging the use of affirmative action in college admissions.

The University of California’s amicus curiae brief, known as a “friend of the court” brief, was submitted to the U.S. Supreme Court in support of the University of Texas in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin.

The case, ongoing since 2013, involves two female white students who applied to the University of Texas at Austin and were rejected. The plaintiffs brought their case forward on the basis that they had been discriminated against because of their race.  

The UC brief describes the university’s position that despite two decades of “effort and experimentation” with race-neutral UC admissions, the university has continually fallen short of enrolling sufficient numbers of underrepresented-minority students to reach its goal.

“The University of California belongs to the people of California, and race-blind admissions have curbed our ability to fully engage the learning potential found among this state’s diverse population,” Napolitano said in a press release. “We are committed to serving California’s educational needs. Ensuring campuses enable meaningful interactions among students of different backgrounds is key to this mission.”