The University of Oregon was named in an investigation among 44 other schools for violating  Title VI, according to the United States Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. 

OCR said the investigation came amid allegations that UO had violated Title VI for its partnership with “The PhD Project,” an organization that provides doctoral students with opportunities and insights into obtaining a doctoral degree, and “limits eligibility based on the race of participants.”

According to UO spokesperson Angela Seydel, the complaint involves the “UO Lundquist College of Business’ affiliation” with The PhD Project.  

According to the Lundquist College of Business’ website, the college is “proud to be a participating university in The PhD Project.” 

On Feb. 14, OCR released a letter, clarifying and reaffirming “the nondiscrimination obligations of schools and other entities that receive federal financial assistance from the United States Department of Education.”

The letter established that all schools receiving federal funding must:

• “Ensure that their policies and actions comply with existing civil rights law.”
• “Cease all efforts to circumvent prohibitions on the use of race by relying on proxies or other indirect means to accomplish such ends.”
• “Cease all reliance on third-party contractors, clearinghouses, or aggregators that are being used by institutions in an effort to circumvent prohibited uses of race.” 

Because of this, OCR cited the letter as a reason why an investigation opened against UO. 

According to U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, the Department of Education is working to “reorient” civil rights enforcement.

“Today’s announcement expands our efforts to ensure universities are not discriminating against their students based on race and race stereotypes,” McMahon said. “Students must be assessed according to merit and accomplishment, not prejudged by the color of their skin.”

Seydel said UO is taking this complaint “seriously.” 

“We (UO) have recently reviewed all of our practices and believe that the University of Oregon is in compliance with the law. We have continued to review policies and practices in light of the (Trump) Administration’s Executive Orders and look forward to working with the Office for Civil Rights to resolve this complaint,” Seydel said.