George Mason violated civil rights law with DEI-based hiring, Ed Dept says
The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights found George Mason University guilty of race-based hiring in violation of federal civil rights law.
The university has 10 days to accept the resolution agreement or face potential loss of federal funding.
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) found George Mason University (GMU) in Fairfax, Virginia, guilty of violating federal civil rights law by using race in hiring and promotion decisions.
OCR announced that under the direction of GMU President Gregory Washington, the university enacted hiring and personnel policies that violate Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits racial discrimination in institutions receiving federal funding.
The findings come from an investigation triggered by complaints from GMU professors who alleged the administration gave preferential treatment to faculty candidates from “underrepresented groups” in the name of “anti-racism.”
OCR concluded that these DEI-based preferences constituted unlawful discrimination.
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The Dept. of Education issued a proposed resolution agreement, which GMU has 10 days to accept. The university could face federal consequences if it refuses.
The resolution mandates that President Washington issue a personal apology to the university community, stating that GMU will comply with Title VI in all hiring and promotion practices.
The university must also revise its hiring materials, eliminate discriminatory language, and conduct annual training for staff involved in faculty hiring and advancement.
”The University now has the opportunity to come into compliance with federal civil rights laws by entering into a Resolution Agreement with the Office for Civil Rights,” Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor wrote in the Friday press release.
”The Trump-McMahon Department of Education will not allow racially exclusionary practices—which violate the Civil Rights Act, the Equal Protection Clause, and Supreme Court precedent—to continue corrupting our nation’s educational institutions,” he concluded.
[RELATED: Trump admin to require colleges to report race in admissions data]
According to OCR, GMU’s website explicitly allowed the university to bypass standard hiring procedures “when there is an opportunity to hire a candidate who strategically advances the institutional commitment to diversity and inclusion.”
The school’s Faculty Handbook required that job offers be approved by a newly renamed “Office of Access, Compliance, and Community,” which was formerly the “Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion,” signaling continued institutional commitment to race-based practices even after the Supreme Court’s decision banning race-based college admissions.
OCR also reported that a senior GMU administrator admitted the president created a “surveillance” atmosphere around hiring to enforce DEI goals. These practices, the department concluded, violate Title VI and put the university at risk of losing federal funding.
Campus Reform has contacted George Mason University for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
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