ED Office for Civil Rights Reaches Agreement Regarding Title VI Complaints

The University of Michigan has entered into a resolution agreement with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) to register its commitment to compliance with Title VI of the of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Catherine E. LhamonComplaints arose about the university’s responses to allegations of discrimination or harassment, including based on shared Jewish ancestry and shared Palestinian or Muslim ancestry. OCR reviewed documentation of 75 similar reports from the 2022-23 school year through February 2024.

OCR stated that it found no evidence that the university complied with its Title VI requirements to assess whether incidents individually or cumulatively created a hostile environment for students, faculty, or staff, and if so, to take steps reasonably calculated to end the hostile environment, remedy its effects, and prevent its recurrence.

The university plans for its Equity, Civil Rights and Title IX (ECRT) office to assume primary responsibility for addressing Title VI complaints, and it committed to:

· Reviewing case files for each report of discrimination and/or harassment based on shared ancestry during the 2023-2024 school year,

· Reporting to OCR on its responses to reports of discrimination over the next two school years,

· Revising as necessary university policies and procedures to ensure they adequately address the Title VI prohibition on discrimination,