Cases & Developments - National Association of College and University Attorneys

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Date:
7/19/2024
Beny v. Univ. of Mich. Bd. of Regents (E.D. Mich. Jul. 17, 2024)
Opinion and Order granting Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment. Plaintiff, a tenured professor of law at the University of Michigan who is African American and has been a critic of what she perceived as inequitable practices, brought discrimination and retaliation claims against the University and a law school Dean after she was disciplined for repeated allegedly threatening, unprofessional, and disruptive communications to faculty and staff, suspended from teaching, and made ineligible for various benefits after she was found to have abandoned her duties and retaliated against students in response to anonymous student complaints related to her teaching. In granting summary judgment in favor of the University, the court found plaintiff’s claims all failed at the pretext stage because she did not dispute the nature of her communications, for which she had been the subject of multiple threat assessments, and failed to show that the University’s explanation for her suspension, which relied primarily on her abandonment of her class, was the result of an inappropriate attention to her actions.
Topics:
Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Race and National Origin Discrimination | Retaliation | Sex Discrimination | Sex Discrimination in Employment
Date:
7/19/2024
Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. Univ. of Tex. at Austin (W.D. Tex. July 15, 2024)
Order granting Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss for Mootness. Plaintiffs, Students for Fair Admissions, sued the University of Texas at Austin in July 2020, alleging that the University’s admissions policies impermissibly consider race in violation of Title VI and the Equal Protection Clause. After the Supreme Court’s decision in SFFA v. Harvard-UNC, the University revised its admissions process to eliminate consideration of race and ethnicity as factors in admissions decisions and “created new processes to train and supervise its admissions officers and employees to ensure that they do not consider race or ethnicity as a factor in the admissions process.” In granting dismissal for mootness, the court held that this policy is lawful. It further held that because the policy change was compelled by law, the voluntary cessation doctrine does not apply and the assertion that the “requested injunctive relief impedes mootness is unavailing.” It also held that because “nothing in the record indicates that UT Austin has any intention of reverting to its prior admissions practices,” issuing an injunction barring them from doing so “would be nonsensical.”
Topics:
Admissions | Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Race and National Origin Discrimination | Students
Date:
7/12/2024
OCR Resolution Agreement with Brown University re: Title VI Compliance (July 8, 2024)
Resolution Agreement between the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and Brown University of Rhode Island resolving a complaint that it responded inadequately to alleged harassment based on shared Jewish ancestry. The associated Resolution Letter noted (1) additional incidents of alleged harassment based on shared Palestinian, Arab, and/or Muslim ancestry and (2) that the University had “begun implementing changes to its Title VI organizational structures, reporting processes, and resources” in support of newly adopted “key priorities.” Through the Agreement, the University agreed to make additional updates to its policies and procedures; provide training to all employees and students; engage in detailed record keeping, review, and reporting on its responses to complaints; and engage in continued analysis and action pursuant to a climate assessment it had already begun.
Topics:
Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Race and National Origin Discrimination | Religious Discrimination & Accommodation
Date:
7/12/2024
U.S. Dep’t of Education Fact Sheet re: Harassment Based on Race, Color or National Origin (July 2, 2024)
U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) Fact Sheet on Harassment Based on Race, Color, or National Origin on School Campuses. Noting that “OCR’s enforcement activities have demonstrated that discriminatory harassment of students based on their race, color, or national origin continues to be a concern on school campuses,” the Fact Sheet describes prohibited harassment, including harassment that creates a hostile environment, under Title VI and outlines schools’ response obligations. The Fact Sheet provides several hypothetical examples of factual allegations OCR might investigate to determine whether a hostile environment exists and whether a school has responded adequately to such information, as well as a list of additional related resources.
Topics:
Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Race and National Origin Discrimination
Date:
6/21/2024
OCR Resolution Agreement with Lafayette College re: Title VI Compliance (June 20, 2024)
Resolution Agreement between the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and Lafayette College resolving a complaint that the College discriminated against students on the basis of national origin (shared Jewish ancestry) by not responding adequately to incidents of alleged harassment in October 2023. Through the Agreement, the University agreed to review its policies related to assessing when alleged discrimination or harassment creates a hostile environment; provide annual training to all staff responsible for investigating complaints and to all staff and students on discrimination based on race, color, and national origin, including harassment based on shared ancestry and ethnic characteristics; and review its response to past complaints to ensure that a determination regarding hostile environment was made regarding every complaint of discrimination or harassment. A related Resolution Letter summarized the findings of OCR’s investigation.
Topics:
Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Race and National Origin Discrimination | Religious Discrimination & Accommodation
Date:
6/21/2024
OCR Resolution Agreement with Univ. of Michigan re: Title VI Compliance (June 14, 2024)
Resolution Agreement between the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the University of Michigan resolving complaints that on multiple occasions during the 2023-2024 school year the University discriminated against students on the basis of national origin (shared Jewish ancestry/Israeli) by not responding adequately to incidents of discrimination or harassment. Through the Agreement, the University agreed to review its policies and procedures to ensure they adequately address Title VI’s prohibitions on discrimination, including to ensure that they require the University to assess whether reported discrimination or harassment has created a hostile environment; to develop and conduct annual training for students and employees, which may be web-based; to develop and administer a climate assessment on the extent to which students and employees have experienced or witnessed discrimination prohibited by Title VI; and, based on a review of its files and to the extent that it has not already, to offer services and support to those affected by a hostile environment resulting from such incidents. It also agreed to extensive reporting requirements related to each of these items. A related Resolution Letter summarized the findings of OCR’s investigation.
Topics:
Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Race and National Origin Discrimination | Religious Discrimination & Accommodation
Date:
6/21/2024
OCR Resolution Agreement with City Univ. of N.Y. re: Title VI Compliance (June 10, 2024)
Resolution Agreement between the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the City University of New York resolving multiple complaints of discrimination based on national origin, including shared Jewish, Israeli, Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, and/or South Asian ancestry by the University or its constituent schools and colleges. Through the Agreement, the University agreed to complete comprehensive reviews already underway of its policies and procedures for its 25 constituent colleges and schools; conduct new-hire and annual refresher training for diversity and compliance employees and campus peace officers; conduct an audit of its responses to all complaints of discrimination or harassment based on national origin; conduct a climate assessment and analysis for all constituent colleges and schools; issue a statement from the Chancellor within 30 days that the University does not tolerate discrimination or harassment based on national origin, including shared ancestry and ethnic characteristics, encouraging students and employees to report incidents of such discrimination or harassment, and provide outlined individualized remedies. The University also agreed to ongoing monitoring until OCR determines it has demonstrated compliance with all the provisions of the Agreement. A related Resolution Letter summarized the findings of OCR’s investigation.
Topics:
Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Race and National Origin Discrimination | Religious Discrimination & Accommodation
Date:
6/14/2024
Wynn v. Univ. of Toledo (N.D. Ohio June 7, 2024)
Memorandum Opinion and Order granting Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment. Plaintiff, a former Director of Labor/Employee Relations and HR Compliance at the University of Toledo who is African American, brought discrimination and retaliation claims against the University after he was denied promotion, terminated for performance issues, and arrested when he ignored multiple demands that he return his University-owned laptop. In granting summary judgment in favor of the University on his failure to promote claim, it held that plaintiff’s assertion that he had more “progressive experience” was insufficient to overcome the University’s stated preference for a candidate with a law degree and broader experience at a higher level of responsibility. Regarding his claims related to his termination, the court held that conclusory allegations of a “purge” and factual allegations of protected activity raised only in opposition to the Motion were insufficient to overcome his undisputed performance deficiencies. Turning to his retaliatory arrest claim, the court found that (1) he failed to show that the University ever requested that his proposed comparator, who was terminated but kept her work laptop, actually return the device and (2) his assertion that the University ensured a felony warrant by choosing not to depreciate the value of his older laptop was insufficient to overcome the fact that “the investigation and subsequent arrest were conducted by the [University’s] Police Department and based on documented policy and investigative procedures.”
Topics:
Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Race and National Origin Discrimination | Retaliation
Date:
6/7/2024
Am. All. for Equal Rights v. Fearless Fund Mgmt. (11th Cir. Jun 3, 2024)
Opinion reversing denial of preliminary injunction and remanding. Plaintiff, the American Alliance for Equal Rights, a membership organization dedicated to “ending racial classifications and racial preferences in America,” sued Fearless Fund, its Foundation, and related entities, alleging that the Foundation’s “Fearless Strivers Grant Contest” violates the 42 U.S.C. § 1981 prohibition on racial discrimination by private parties in contracts. The contest awards monetary grants and other assistance to four winners, who must be black females or businesses that are at least 51% black woman owned, and contestants must agree to the contest’s rules to enter. The district court found the Alliance had standing based on declarations from three anonymous members who alleged they were excluded from the contest. Though it agreed that §1981 applied to the contest, it denied a preliminary injunction, finding that (1) the Alliance was not likely to succeed on the merits because the First Amendment may bar the §1981 claim and (2) the Alliance had not demonstrated an irreparable injury. A divided panel of the Eleventh Circuit reversed the denial of preliminary injunction. Invoking 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis (U.S. 2023), it held the Alliance was likely to succeed in showing that the Contest crossed the line from an expressive commitment to the Black women-owned business community into discriminatory acts. It further held that “each lost opportunity to enter Fearless’s contest works an irreparable injury’ with respect to the cash prize, mentorship, and other ensuing business opportunities.
Topics:
Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Race and National Origin Discrimination
Date:
5/31/2024
Doe v. N.Y. Univ. (S.D. N.Y. May 30, 2024)
Opinion & Order granting Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss. Plaintiff, a rising second-year law student at New York University who describes himself as a heterosexual white male who plans to apply to the NYU Law Review, brought Title VI and Title IX claims against the University challenging the Law Review’s selection process in light of the Supreme Court’s decision in the Students for Fair Admissions cases. While the Law Review previously designated 12 of its 50 positions to be filled by a process through its Diversity Committee, it does not currently mention the alleged “diversity set-aside” and instead requires each applicant to submit a statement of interest that it describes as “an opportunity for applicants to provide the Selection Committee a more comprehensive view of who [they] are as an individual.” In granting the University’s motion to dismiss, the court found plaintiff’s assertion that the Law Review could glean information by which it might discriminate from the statements of interest was insufficient to show an injury. It also determined plaintiff failed to state a claim, finding his allegation of a discriminatory selection process both conclusory and unsupported by the facially neutral policy, which did not identify a preference for students from a protected class. Finally, the court noted that absent factual allegations as to what role the institution played in the operations of the student-run Law Review, the complaint failed to allege intentional discrimination by the University.
Topics:
Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Gender Identity & Sexual Orientation Discrimination | Race and National Origin Discrimination | Sex Discrimination

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