This timeline reflects some of the most significant legal and legislative milestones that have influenced higher education over the 25 years that "Diverse: Issues in Higher Education," formerly "Black Issues in Higher Education," has been in print. The legal battles have primarily involved the settlement of desegregation cases and the use of race and gender in scholarships and university admissions. More recent changes include attacks on affirmative action, with Michigan and Nebraska bringing the number of states banning race- and gender-conscious preferences to four. The election of Barack Obama to the nation's highest office in the land may prove pivotal in unintended ways with some pundits using Obama's success to bolster arguments that affirmative action is no longer necessary.