EXCLUSIVE — A group of Republican senators led by Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) urged the Department of Education to aggressively enforce the United States Supreme Court's ruling banning affirmative action in a letter Thursday.

The letter, signed by 10 Republican senators, accuses the department and Education Secretary Miguel Cardona of putting forth a set of recommendations for colleges to comply with the court ruling that "directly conflict with the spirit" of the ruling.

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The Supreme Court's ruling in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard barred colleges and universities from considering an applicant's race in admissions decisions. The ruling overturned decades of precedent that had allowed college admissions offices to use race as a secondary factor when deciding to admit students.

The letter was signed by Ernst, along with Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Mike Braun (R-IN), Katie Britt (R-AL), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Eric Schmitt (R-MO), Rick Scott (R-FL), Thom Tillis (R-NC), JD Vance (R-OH), and Roger Wicker (R-MS).

"While the Court took a big step forward in eliminating racial discrimination in admissions, more work remains to be done," the senators wrote. "As was the case in the wake of the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka decision, executive enforcement, additional legislation, as well as litigation, were all required to ensure the Supreme Court’s decision was faithfully and accurately implemented and reflected by schools across the country."

The letter notes that the Department of Education and the Biden administration have expressed a hostile view of the court's decision, as have a number of the nation's top colleges and universities. In August, the department released guidance that urged college admissions offices to "recruit and retain talented students from underserved communities, including those with [a] large number of students of color.”

The department also encouraged colleges to "consider the ways that a student’s background, including experiences linked to their race, have shaped their lives," a direct reference to Chief Justice John Roberts's majority opinion, which said that colleges could encourage students to discuss how their race has affected their life experience in essays and other application materials. The chief justice's caveat has been described as a "loophole" by college admissions experts.

In their letter, the senators said they were "disappointed" by the department's guidance and said that the recommendations laid out to colleges by the agency "further encourage racially motivated admission practices."

"No policies derived from a racially motivated worldview benefit our democracy, our society, or our young college hopefuls," the senators wrote. "Each applicant deserves an equal chance to be admitted, regardless of their race. It is concerning to see your Department produce guidance to the contrary."

The letter demands the Department of Education provide a "detailed plan of action" on how it plans to conduct oversight of college admissions and create a "publicly accessible repository of allegations from the public of noncompliance" with the court's ruling. The lawmakers also asked the department to provide advanced notice of any guidance put forth by the department's Office for Civil Rights "to ensure it does not permit colleges and universities to use pretexts for race or encourage their applicants to divulge their race by means other than direct request."

In a statement to the Washington Examiner, Ernst said that the Biden administration's actions "continu[e] to indicate that when it comes to college admissions, your race matters more than your merits and your character."

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This message is not only dangerous, it’s anti-American,” she continued. “Students in Iowa and across the county deserve better than racial determinism. I’m fighting to make sure the Supreme Court’s decision on affirmative action is followed.”

A spokesperson for the Department of Education told the Washington Examiner that "The Department has received the letter and will review it.”