This is all too complicated. Harvard has a simple objective function: To maximize the future positive “impact” on society its alumni have, and the resulting prestige reflected on their alma mater.
Title IX and the 2019 college admissions bribery scandal demonstrate that the government has authority to determine what form the admissions process is allowed to take, and intervene if necessary to ensure whatever process in place is fair in a legal sense. My comment was an exploration of the idea of fairness in admissions and not a case study of any institution’s individual admissions process.
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22975148