This afternoon, the day before the United States celebrates its independence, the Department of Education and Department of Justice issued startling guidance that withdrew long-standing guidance and legal president on the use of race by elementary, secondary, and postsecondary educational institutions. The documents that the U.S. government has withdrawn are listed below.
- December 2, 2011 Dear Colleague Letter Regarding the Use of Race by Educational Institutions;
- 2011 Guidance on the Voluntary Use of Race to Achieve Diversity in Postsecondary Education dated December 2, 2011;
- 2011 Guidance on the Voluntary Use of Race to Achieve Diversity and Avoid Racial Isolation in Elementary and Secondary Schools dated December 2, 2011;
- September 27, 2013 Dear Colleague Letter on the Voluntary Use of Race to Achieve Diversity in Higher Education After Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin [Fisher I];
- September 27, 2013 Questions and Answers About Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin [Fisher I];
- May 6, 2014 Dear Colleague Letter on the Supreme Court Ruling in Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action; and
- September 30, 2016 Questions and Answers About Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin [Fisher II].
According to the email, these documents advocate specific policies and procedures for educational institutions to adopt, analyze a number of hypotheticals, and draw conclusions about whether the actions in those hypotheticals would violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution or Title IV or Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
The email further states that “upon review, these documents and have concluded that they advocate policy preferences and positions beyond the requirements of the Constitution, Title IV, and Title VI. Moreover, the documents prematurely decide, or appear to decide, whether particular actions violate the Constitution or federal law”. It is without a doubt an assault on historically underrepresented minorities and low- to middle-income families looking to break the cycle of poverty.
The leadership at College Aid Services, LLC vehemently disagrees with the rationale that used by the Department of Education and Department of Justice to rescind these guidelines. We hope to work with our state, regional, and national representation to ensure everyone, regardless of race, religion, or economic status has the opportunity to succeed. We encourage all financial aid administrators who monitor ed.gov@public.govdelivery.com to review this email and contact their institution’s general counsel for further guidance.
Reference:
https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USED/bulletins/1fbe0e1