The U.S. Department of Education is starting a civil rights investigation into Harvard University’s use of legacy and donor preferences in its admission decisions.
The U.S. Department of Education is starting a civil rights investigation into Harvard University’s use of legacy and donor preferences in its admission decisions. The probe was revealed in a letter from the Department on Monday that was released by Lawyers for Civil Rights today.
The letter indicated that the Department would investigate: “whether the University discriminates on the basis of race by using donor and legacy preferences in its undergraduate admissions process.”
The letter said the specific basis for the investigation was “Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI), 42 U.S.C. Section 2000d et seq., and its implementing regulation at 34 C.F.R. Part 100, which prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin in any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance from the U.S. Department of Education.”
The probe is a response to an official complaint filed in July by Lawyers for Civil Rights on behalf of three Boston-area groups: the Chica Project, African Community Economic Development of New England and the Greater Boston Latino Network, who alleged that Harvard was discriminating against Black, Hispanic and Asian applicants by favoring white candidates with alumni and donor ties.
