Associations, Discrimination and the Academy

There's an interesting discussion over at the Volokh Conspiracy (and St. Maximos' Hut) regarding an academic association forging its identity through a non-discrimination norm and the impact such an identity has on the ability of schools (in this case, Wheaton College) to forge their own unique identities.  At some point, one side's associational identity has to give; my understanding of subsidiarity calls for the higher body (the association) to resist the temptation to elevate its own moral claims to non-negotiable status when such claims preclude the pursuit of divergent claims by the lower body (the school).  This does not mean that all academic associations must allow all moral claims to flourish among their members.  Where exclusion from an association does not threaten the viability of a school, there is no reason why the higher body must disregard its own identity to embrace all schools seeking membership.  (E.g., There is no reason why an Association of Christian Law Schools should have to admit UCLA.)  It's different, though, where exclusion from an association calls into question the very ability of a school to function.  (E.g., The American Association of Law Schools should not require that member schools agree not to consider religion in its decisions on faculty hiring.)

Rob