Civil Rights

Read more about civil rights and schools, enforcement by the Education Department's office for civil rights, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, Title IX, and more

Explainer

The U.S. Department of Education, in Washington, D.C., pictured on February 21, 2021.
How a Federal Office Investigates and Resolves Discrimination Complaints Against Schools
What is OCR, how do you file a complaint, and what relief can it offer for students or staff whose civil rights may have been violated?
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Students at Strom Thurmond High School in Johnston, S.C., make their way to class late last year. The school—named in honor of one of South Carolina’s most influential politicians and most notable opponents to the integration of schools—has a student body that is 50 percent African-American. Past efforts to rename the school failed and a state law passed in the 1980s made the name permanent.
Students at Strom Thurmond High School in Johnston, S.C., make their way to class late last year. The school—named in honor of one of South Carolina’s most influential politicians and most notable opponents to the integration of schools—has a student body that is 50 percent African-American. Past efforts to rename the school failed and a state law passed in the 1980s made the name permanent.
Gerry Melendez for Education Week
School & District Management In Eight States, Public Schools Are Named for Segregationists
Public schools named in honor of segregationists haven't drawn the same level of scrutiny as those named after Confederate figures.
Andrew Ujifusa, January 22, 2019
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14 min read
Federal Betsy DeVos Should 'Recommit' to Enforcing Civil Rights Laws, Coalition Says
Groups including the American Federation of Teachers, Children's Defense Fund, and the NAACP urged the Trump administration to address "racial discrimination in school discipline."
Andrew Ujifusa, January 10, 2019
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2 min read
Federal Civil Rights Groups Urge Congress to Tackle DeVos Oversight, School Safety Legislation
Thanks to the midterm elections, Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., is set to take over the House education committee, and civil rights groups have a significant list of demands.
Andrew Ujifusa, December 13, 2018
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2 min read
Special Education DeVos Team Tempering Its Changes to Process of Civil Rights Complaints
The Education Department says it’s getting rid of language that called for investigators to dismiss multiple complaints coming from the same source, after furious objections from the civil rights community.
Christina A. Samuels & Alyson Klein, December 11, 2018
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4 min read
Federal Can A Private School Receiving Voucher Money Ban a Student Over Dreadlocks?
The ACLU and NAACP have filed formal civil rights complaints against the school for its dress code policies, another case that highlights the blurring lines in public oversight for private schools that accept state aid in the form of vouchers.
Arianna Prothero, November 30, 2018
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5 min read
Federal Ed. Dept. Watchdog to Look Into DeVos Team's Oversight of ESSA, Dismissal of Civil Rights Complaints
The U.S. Department of Education's internal watchdog—the Office of the Inspector General—will be looking at the agency's process dismissing civil rights complaints, its oversight of accountability systems, and other issues.
Alyson Klein, November 29, 2018
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1 min read
Equity & Diversity Trump Team Reverses Controversial Changes to Handling of Civil Rights Probes
The office for civil rights is reversing itself on several key changes in the manual that outlines how it investigates civil rights claims.
Alyson Klein & Christina A. Samuels, November 20, 2018
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4 min read
Law & Courts Feds Probing Transgender Policy, Alleged Assault
The Education Department's office for civil rights will investigate whether a Georgia elementary school's policy for transgender students contributed to the alleged assault of a girl.
Evie Blad, October 9, 2018
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3 min read
Equity & Diversity Education Tops List of Civil Rights Issues on Survey
The issue was named ahead of criminal justice, voting rights, freedom of expression, and enforcement by many advisory group members surveyed by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.
Andrew Ujifusa, September 19, 2018
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2 min read
Federal If Democrats Take House, What Next?
If Democrats take control of the U.S. House of Representatives next year, expect them to focus heavily on Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos' civil rights record.
Andrew Ujifusa, September 19, 2018
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7 min read
Equity & Diversity Education Tops List of Ongoing Civil Rights Priorities, Commission Survey Indicates
Civil rights in education has been a major area of recent political conflict, including disputes over racial disparities in school discipline and transgender students.
Andrew Ujifusa, September 10, 2018
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2 min read
Federal If Democrats Take the House, Here's What Awaits Betsy DeVos, Civil Rights, and ESSA
If Democrats win the House in the November midterm elections, expect them to focus heavily on Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos' civil rights record. But how often would they call her to testify?
Andrew Ujifusa, September 9, 2018
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10 min read
Equity & Diversity State Attorneys General Tell Betsy DeVos: Keep Obama School Discipline Guidance
DeVos has been weighing whether to rescind the guidance, which has proven to be one of the most controversial initiatives from Obama's education policy team.
Andrew Ujifusa, August 26, 2018
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2 min read
Equity & Diversity Activists to DeVos: Hold Firm and Reject Florida's ESSA Plan
Florida is the only state without an Every Student Succeeds Act plan approved by the federal education secretary. Two civil rights groups say things should stay that way, for now.
Corey Mitchell, August 14, 2018
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2 min read
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