FIX EXCLUSIVES
Key Takeaways
- The Equal Protection Project filed a lawsuit against the University of Wyoming, claiming that its race-based scholarships violate federal law, including Title VI and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
- The complaint highlights specific scholarships like the Hearst Scholars Award, which restrict eligibility based on race, and argues that such discrimination is harmful regardless of whether individuals applied and were rejected.
- The university said it will respond to the complaint and has ceased accepting donor scholarships that include race or sex-based preferences, aiming to focus on merit-based awards instead.
Four race-based scholarships at the University of Wyoming violate federal law, a new complaint from a conservative legal advocacy group alleges.
The Equal Protection Project’s civil rights complaint states the programs violate both Title VI and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution by discriminating based on sex, race, or national origin.
The Hearst Scholars Award Scholarship, for example, is only available to “American Indian/Alaska Native; Asian American/Pacific Islander; Black/African American; or Hispanic/Mexican American/Latino/Chicano” students, according to the complaint.
“UW’s explicit race- and sex-based scholarships are presumptively invalid, and since there is no compelling government justification for such invidious discrimination, UW’s offering, promotion, and administration of these programs violates state and federal civil rights statutes and constitutional equal protection guarantees,” the complaint states.
Reached for comment, EPP founder William Jacobson told The College Fix the complaint “is based on how the scholarships are promoted and the eligibility criteria set forth by the university on its website.”
Jacobson referenced past rulings from the U.S. Supreme Court, claiming that the harm is the barrier itself, not the inability of others to obtain the benefit.
“The existence of race-based eligibility criteria is itself the harm, regardless of whether particular individuals applied and were rejected,” Jacobson told The Fix.
He added that “Aid can be targeted, but not using racial criteria.”
“So it is permissible to target aid to students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, provided race, color, or national origin are not used as proxies for economic disadvantage,” he said.
The Fix asked about whether the university could win on appeal. This would require a court to recognize the program as having a compelling interest to exist.
Jacobson told The Fix, “Racial diversity is not a compelling state interest … so we can’t see any legal justification for the U. Wyoming scholarships we have challenged.”
University of Wyoming spokesperson Chad Baldwin told The Fix that the university “will respond and collaborate with OCR per normal processes and procedures.”
“The UW Foundation agreed to halt receiving any donor scholarships that include preferences for race or sex going forward,” Baldwin told The Fix.
He also said that the OCR had previously contacted UW, and the institution modified its scholarship and program practices. He noted that the university “will continue to work with OCR, including if their interpretation has evolved.”
Former University of Michigan professor and Title IX expert Mark Perry told The Fix the school “is clearly violating both Title VI and Title IX by restricting scholarships based on race, sex, or both.”
“One approach to comply with Title VI and Title IX but still target disadvantaged groups is to base eligibility on various criteria without regard to race and/or sex,” Perry said.
He offered some recommendations for the university to ensure scholarships are available indiscriminately, passing the OCR’s requirements.
The school could offer scholarships to students with a history of homelessness, a history in the foster care system, eligibility for Federal Pell grants, a history of upbringing in a low-income area, and a history of social or physical challenges.
“Those criteria are all race- and sex-neutral, and eligibility based on those factors would not violate Title VI or Title IX,” Perry told The Fix.
This lawsuit against UW is part of the Equal Protection Project’s broader effort to challenge diversity-focused scholarships nationwide.
“EPP has challenged over 275 colleges and universities regarding over 750 scholarships and programs. Our efforts are national in scope and continuing,” Jacobson said.
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