Education Department, Accusing Harvard of ‘Stonewalling’ Data Requests, Launches Two New Civil Rights Probes

The Department of Education has opened two new civil rights investigations into Harvard University, including one alleging that the school has refused to produce data demonstrating its compliance with the Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling outlawing affirmative action.“No one — not even Harvard — is above the law,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement. “If Harvard continues to stonewall as we try to verify its basic compliance with antidiscrimination statutes, we will vigorously hold them to account to ensure students’ rights are protected.”The probe, launched by the department’s Office of Civil Rights on Monday, addresses complaints alleging that Harvard has continued to weigh race in admissions decisions, a practice the Supreme Court struck down in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard. The government says Harvard has ignored an admissions data request issued last May and Monday’s announcement orders the university to comply or face enforcement action, including a referral to the Department of Justice.The DOJ sued Harvard in February, alleging the school had “thwarted” and “slow-walked” federal efforts to review its civil rights compliance by withholding applicants’ racial data, test scores, and grades. Though Harvard produced more than 2,000 pages of documents in May 2025, the complaint held that the university fell short of what was requested.The Office of Civil Rights also opened a second probe Monday into alleged antisemitic harassment on Harvard’s campus and the university’s failure to protect Jewish students. The department said it “will evaluate both complaints and, if continued discrimination is found, take action to hold Harvard accountable for any illegal policies or actions.”Harvard responded to the probes by affirming that the school “continues to comply with the law in its admissions practices, including the Supreme Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions, and does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, or national origin including shared ancestry. Harvard continues to engage with federal agencies in good faith and to provide information consistent with our legal obligations and institutional responsibilities.”The dual probes follow a civil rights lawsuit the DOJ filed against Harvard last week, alleging the university permitted a “hostile educational environment” for Jewish and Israeli students in the aftermath of Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel. The suit alleges that Jews and Israelis at Harvard “were harassed, physically assaulted, stalked, and spat upon,” were “repeatedly denied access to educational facilities by antisemitic demonstrators,” and were compelled to conceal their identities out of fear. “Harvard’s response to this: do nothing,” the complaint states.Harvard dismissed the suit as “yet another pretextual and retaliatory action by the administration for refusing to turn over control of Harvard to the federal government.”

Education Department, Accusing Harvard of ‘Stonewalling’ Data Requests, Launches Two New Civil Rights Probes

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