The Chicago school district will not receive a $4 million federal grant this year because the district has failed to demonstrate that it is sufficiently addressing complaints of sexual violence, the U.S. Department of Education said.
The department informed district officials last month that it had suspended this year’s installment of the Magnet Schools Assistance Program grant, The Chicago Tribune reported. The third-largest district in the U.S. was awarded a $14.9 million grant last year to be distributed over five years.
The department said the district hasn’t demonstrated that it is meeting civil rights obligations to address specific sexual violence complaints or larger patterns of harm. The district can restart the grant next year if it comes into civil rights compliance.
The district said it will appeal.
This summer, the district formed a new 20-person office to oversee investigations of student bullying and abuse, following a Chicago Tribune investigation on lapses in the district’s response to sexual abuse.
The office for civil rights said it found “serious and pervasive” violations of Title IX, which is a federal law designed to protect students from abuse, harassment, and gender-based discrimination.
