The U.S. Department of Education issued new civil rights guidance on Feb. 14, warning federally funded schools and colleges against discriminatory practices related to race. In a Dear Colleague letter, the Office for Civil Rights accused some institutions of promoting the idea that the United States is founded on “systemic and structural racism” and claimed such messaging can amount to unlawful race-based discrimination. The letter sets a 14-day compliance deadline and threatens potential loss of federal funding for institutions found in violation.

Glendale Community College is currently in compliance with state and federal legal requirements, according to GCC President Dr. Ryan Cornner. “GCC already operates under the requirement of compliance with California’s Proposition 209,” the college president wrote in an email dated Feb. 26. “As such, we believe our programs comply with both current state and federal relevant legal requirements,” he notes in his announcement. Dr. Cornner stated that GCC will continue reviewing its status to maintain a record in case its compliance is ever questioned.

The Department of Education policy update relies on enforcing a 2023 Supreme Court ruling in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, which overturned the practice of race-conscious admissions policies known collectively as affirmative action. The 2023 ruling, released during President Biden’s administration, initially had little effect on policy. The Biden administration even released informal guidance to educational institutions that dictated methods of continuing their pursuit of racial diversity while adhering to the law. However, the Department of Education under President Trump’s administration is taking steps to broadly enforce the SFFA v. Harvard ruling and put an end to race-based admissions altogether. 

“Discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin is illegal and morally reprehensible,” the Dear Colleague letter opens. The stated intent of the letter is to reiterate existing legal requirements under Title VI  of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution, and other relevant authorities. Although the interpretation of anti-discrimination law, as set forth in the letter and according to the Trump administration, has been contested as “overly broad and expansive, a concern shared among legal experts,” by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC). ACCJC is the accrediting agency that California colleges are accountable to and which provide accreditation.

“Although SFFA addressed admissions decisions, the Supreme Court’s holding applies more broadly. At its core, the test is simple: If an educational institution treats a person of one race differently than it treats another person because of that person’s race, the educational institution violates the law,” the Dear Colleague Letter states.

“There has been a preliminary injunction ordered for the implementation of the Dear Colleague Letter, preventing any loss of funding related to compliance at this point,” President Cornner states in his announcement. The injunction, filed by Maryland’s Judge Adam Abelson on Feb. 21, came in response to President Trump’s series of executive orders signed within days of his taking office. The temporarily barred executive orders attempt to establish the administration’s views on anti-discrimination, its plans to terminate equity-related grants and contracts, and end illegal preference and discrimination in the federal government and private sector. 

“Judge Abelson wrote in his opinion that the plaintiffs had ‘shown they are likely to prove’ that provisions of the orders were ‘unconstitutionally vague on their face,’ and beyond that, provisions of the orders ‘squarely, unconstitutionally,’ violated freedom of speech,” wrote Dr. Cornner.

The Department of Education’s anti-discrimination policy mandates fall under the scope of Judge Abelson’s injunction, which encompasses all executive branch agencies, departments, and commissions, the judge clarified on March 10. The Trump administration is appealing the preliminary injunction in the Fourth Circuit of Appeals.

Taylor Wiegand can be reached at [email protected].