Hear from Catherine Lhamon, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Education, as she engages in a dialogue with Danielle Conley, a partner in the White Collar Defense & Investigations practice in the Washington, D.C. office of Latham & Watkins. This free 45-minute video briefing is open to all NACUA members who register.
For many institutions, day-to-day concerns have been eclipsed by the pressing challenges campuses face as they balance employee and student free speech with their duty to maintain a discrimination-free educational environment for students under Title VI, 42 U.S.C., Section 2000(d) of the Civil Rights Act. Protests regarding unrest in the Middle East have led to allegations of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, as well as sometimes competing pressures from politicians, policymakers, alumni, and donors.
Since January of 2023, OCR has issued several Title VI guidance documents, including a Dear Colleague Letter published on November 7. In an interview with CNN on November 6, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said that institutions that fail to enforce Title VI put their federal financial aid funding at risk. Assistant Secretary Lhamon will discuss Title VI enforcement in these fraught times and share other updates and priorities from the Office of Civil Rights.