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The Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights has opened an investigation into the University of Tampa for possible discrimination involving shared ancestry, as well as a second probe into Columbia University.
The department has now initiated 12 such investigations—eight of which involve a college or university—since the start of the Israel-Hamas war that has spurred protests on campuses and a flurry of antisemitic or Islamophobic incidents. That’s according to a public list that was first released last week and will be updated weekly. OCR has seen an influx of complaints in response to rising campus tensions. Last year, the office opened 15 investigations related to shared ancestry discrimination, according to CNN.
The Education Department didn’t say what specifically led to the investigations. Opening an investigation doesn’t mean that OCR has made any decision about the case.
Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, federally funded institutions must protect students from discrimination based on race, color or national origin. The Education Department has said this includes Jews, Muslims and other ethnic or religious groups with shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics.
Colleges under investigation face a loss of their federal funding; however, that’s unlikely to happen. Typically, such investigations will result in a settlement or resolution agreement.
