Institutions should carefully review their policies and practices now that the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Education (ED) have recently formed a special investigations team to increase and prioritize...more
On March 20, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order (EO), “Improving Education Outcomes by Empowering Parents, States, and Communities,” directing the secretary of education “to the maximum extent appropriate...more
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Acting Chair Andrea Lucas issued a statement on March 17, 2025, notifying universities and colleges that the EEOC intends to hold them accountable for antisemitism in on-campus...more
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) directing educational institutions that they are prohibited from using race in decisions pertaining to admissions, hiring,...more
On Feb. 5, 2025, the White House published executive order (EO) “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” aiming to “protect opportunities for women and girls to compete in safe and fair sports [.]” The EO establishes a federal...more
On Jan. 29, 2025, President Donald Trump signed the “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling” executive order (EO) and the “Expanding Educational Freedom and Opportunity for Families” EO, directing federal agencies to...more
2/7/2025
/ Charter Schools ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Department of Education ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Funding ,
Gender Identity ,
Private Schools ,
Public Schools ,
Secretary of Education ,
Trump Administration
The U.S. Department of Education has released its final amendments of the regulations to Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 regarding how educational institutions must handle allegations of sexual discrimination and...more
Continuing its efforts questioning the constitutionality of the use of race in higher education admissions, Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) has filed a lawsuit in the District of Maryland against the U.S. Naval Academy on...more
The U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division have published a joint Dear Colleague Letter (Joint OCR and DOJ DCL) that, together with a Q&A, provides...more
8/29/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Dear Colleague Letter ,
Department of Education ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Equal Protection ,
OCR ,
Race Discrimination ,
Students ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Title VI
The U.S. Supreme Court held that the use of race in university and college admissions is unconstitutional. Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, No. 20-1199, together with Students...more
7/6/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Civil Rights Act ,
College Admissions ,
Diversity ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
SCOTUS ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Students for Fair Admissions v University of North Carolina ,
Title VII ,
Universities ,
Wage and Hour
The U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has proposed a standard that would clarify participation and equal opportunity of transgender students in school athletics....more
The Seattle City Council passed a first-of-its-kind ordinance prohibiting discrimination based on caste in employment, housing, and public accommodation. Seattle’s mayor approved the ordinance on February 23, 2023, and the...more
The U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has published a factsheet entitled “Diversity and Inclusion Activities Under Title VI,” clarifying that diversity, equity, and inclusion training “in most factual...more
Finding the university was on notice and had an obligation to preserve interview notes related to a climate and culture review because it knew or reasonably should have known to anticipate litigation, the U.S. District Court...more
Over decades, hundreds of colleges and universities have worked to increase the racial diversity of their student bodies for a host of reasons ranging from eliminating past discriminatory practices to ensuring their students...more
The labor shortages faced by the construction industry as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic present an opportunity to focus on attracting a diverse pool of workers and on a renewed commitment to diversity, equity, and...more
The revised Case Processing Manual (CPM) issued by the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) outlines the procedures OCR uses “to promptly and effectively investigate and resolve complaints, compliance...more
Bringing together general counsel, Title IX coordinators, equity directors, ethics officers, and other key administrators, along with outside counsel, the National Association of College and University Attorneys (NACUA) 2022...more
In conjunction with the 50th anniversary of Title IX, the U.S. Department of Education has released its proposed amendments to the regulations for Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 for public comment....more
The 50th anniversary of Title IX provides elementary, secondary, and postsecondary institutions an opportunity to reflect on the impact of and future developments stemming from the law....more
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has announced that it will immediately cease enforcement of the Title IX regulatory provision prohibiting decision-makers’ reliance on statements not subject to...more
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has released its Questions and Answers on the Title IX Regulations on Sexual Harassment (July 2021) and Appendix with sample policies (Q & A), which represents...more
The U.S. Department of Education marked the 49th anniversary of the Title IX Education Amendments of 1972 by issuing a Dear Educator letter. The letter highlights the importance of Title IX and references several Title IX...more
It will fully enforce Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in education programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance from...more
It’s 2021 and so many rules of the game have changed. Employers are facing increasing scrutiny on the Diversity Equity & Inclusion front. Some want to get ahead of it, and make sure their DEI programs are current and...more