FSU faces civil rights complaint over 32 race- and sex-based scholarships

Florida State University (FSU) is facing a federal civil rights complaint calling 32 of its scholarships “discriminatory” based on race or sex.

The complaint, filed by the Equal Protection Project (EPP) with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights on July 18, points to 14 scholarships that violate Title VI, thirteen that violate Title IX, and five that violate both.

[RELATED: ‘Disheartening’: Civil rights group says Western Michigan scholarships break federal law]

“We didn’t expect to find such a large number of discriminatory scholarships at a major state university in the anti-woke Free State of Florida,” EPP founder William A. Jacobson said in a statement.

The scholarships listed in the complaint, such as the Crockett Family Fund for Excellence and the Dr. Hulon and Dinah Crayton Endowed Scholarship, give preference to students based on their racial or gender identities.

“Any student may apply to be considered for the award,” the description for the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Book Stipend reads. “[H]owever, it is the preference of the donor that the recipient be an African American student.”

All of the scholarship descriptions contain a donor-imposed condition that EPP says violates civil rights law, such as “female,” “African American male,” or “a female who is Black/African American, Hispanic, or a member of the Seminole Tribe.”

In a statement provided to Campus Reform, Florida State indicated that all of its students are “eligible to apply for and receive the scholarships listed.”

”These scholarships are funded entirely through private donations—not institutional funds—ensuring they remain accessible to all students without affecting the university’s budget,” the university stated. “While donors may express preferences, these do not constitute eligibility requirements.”

”All applicants are evaluated equally based on merit, and no student is disqualified or given an unfair advantage due to donor preferences,” it concluded.

[RELATED: California students sue UC San Diego over race-based scholarship]

In comments provided to Campus Reform, Jacobson emphasized that the institution cannot use the preference of a donor as a justification for discrimination.

“It is no legal excuse that FSU says many of the scholarships are open to anyone but then expresses the ‘intention of the donor’ to discriminate,” Jacobson stated. “FSU should not be promoting the scholarships in a manner that would dissuade non-favored groups from applying.” 

“There would be no reason for FSU to include such preferences in the scholarship description unless it intended to honor donor intent. Such word games cannot evade the civil rights laws and equal protection constitutional guarantee,” he continued.

Jacobson’s conservative watchdog organization has filed many civil rights complaints against colleges and universities over alleged discriminatory scholarships.

On July 21, EPP filed complaints against the University of Miami and the University of Michigan for scholarship programs offered to “Dreamer” students in violation of federal prohibitions against discrimination based on national origin.

The Department of Education announced investigations into the schools, as well as three others, on July 23.

“Non-citizens should not be given special preference over American citizens for scholarships at American universities,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said on X that same day.