Feds say CUNY and University of Michigan failed to address anti-Semitic, anti-Palestinian incidents

The Department of Education said Monday that both the City University of New York (CUNY) and the University of Michigan failed to meet federal standards in handling recent anti-Semitic and anti-Palestinian incidents on their campuses.

Both schools agreed to resolutions to resolve complaints after the two universities failed to comply with Title IX.

The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) reviewed 75 complaints against the University of Michigan from the 2022-2023 academic year through February of this year.

“The OCR found no evidence that the university complied with Title VI requirements to evaluate whether the incidents, individually or cumulatively, created a hostile environment for students, faculty, or staff and, if so, to take reasonably calculated measures to end with the hostile environment, remedy its effects and prevent their recurrence”, said the office.

One example used by the office was an incident in October when a protester shouted “Nazi liberation” on campus, although records do not show that the university took any steps to resolve the matter beyond forwarding reports to its relations office. public.

In response to the investigation, the school has committed to taking several steps, such as reviewing files from that period to ensure each gets a fair resolution, reporting incidents of discrimination to the office during the 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 school years , reviewing Title IX policies and training, and administering a campus climate assessment.

Meanwhile, CUNY, the OCR said, did not promptly respond to incidents of anti-Semitism and discrimination against Palestinian, Arab, Muslim and/or South Asian ancestry in the results of an investigation dating back to 2020. The university agreed to reopen some cases and provide the new findings to OCR, provide updated Title IX training to employees, and also conduct a campus climate survey.

“Hate has no place on our college campuses – ever. Unfortunately, we have witnessed a series of deeply worrying incidents in recent months. There is no doubt that this is a challenging time for school communities across the country. Recent commitments made by the University of Michigan and CUNY mark a positive step. The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights continues to hold schools accountable for meeting civil rights standards, including by investigating allegations of discrimination or harassment based on shared Jewish ancestry and shared Palestinian or Muslim ancestry,” he said. secretary Miguel Cardona in a statement.

“We will continue to work with school leaders, educators and students across the country to ensure everyone has a safe learning environment,” Cardona added.

The resolutions come as dozens of investigations have been opened by OCR against colleges and universities for anti-Semitic or anti-Palestinian incidents during the 2023-2024 academic school year, in particular following the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent war. in Gaza.

OCR can punish schools by taking away federal money, but most investigations end in settlements with universities.

This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story