UT receives warning from U.S. DOE of “potential enforcement action”

The U.S. Department of Education has warned the University of Tennessee and dozens of other colleges that they may face “potential enforcement actions” due to potentially not complying with federal obligations to protect Jewish students. The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights sent letters to 60 colleges and universities on Monday who the release states, are “presently under investigation for Title VI violations relating to antisemitic harassment and discrimination.” Tennessee is among 55 universities under investigation or monitoring in response to complaints filed with Office for Civil Rights. UT Media Relations Director Kerry Gardner released a statement that said in part that “The university takes its responsibility to maintain an environment free of illegal discrimination very seriously. Any time we are made aware of any issue, we provide support and resources to any potentially impacted students, and also inform them about their right to file a complaint either with a campus office or OCR, as appropriate.”