The U.S. Department of Education is urgently recalling hundreds of Office for Civil Rights employees—fired during a March reduction-in-force—to return on Dec. 15 as unresolved civil rights complaints soar past 25,000. The sudden move follows months of staffing turmoil, ongoing litigation, and a near-collapse of OCR’s capacity, leaving students and families facing long delays in discrimination investigations.
Tag: U.S. Department of Education
Posted inWord In Black
Fewer Black students missing school as attendance slowly rebounds
Chronic absenteeism in U.S. K–12 schools is gradually declining, and a new EdTrust report suggests rates could be cut in half within five years if states continue expanding early interventions, tutoring, and wraparound supports. The improvements are especially significant for Black students, who remain disproportionately affected but are seeing progress as states adopt data-driven strategies and invest in student well-being.
Posted inEducation
The erosion of special education: Fix what is broken, do not wipe it outÂ
The U.S. Department of Education’s decision to dismantle its Office of Special Education threatens essential services for students with disabilities and removes critical oversight. Rather than eliminating support systems, writer Kanika Cousine argues the government should repair and strengthen them to ensure every child has equitable access to education.
Posted inHBCU
Funding shift boosts HBCUs but cuts support for other minority-serving colleges like the University of Baltimore
The U.S. Department of Education is reallocating nearly $500 million in funding to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Tribal Colleges, while cutting $350 million from Predominantly Black and Hispanic-Serving Institutions. The move has sparked backlash from university leaders and lawmakers who say it pits minority-serving institutions against one another and threatens critical student support programs.
Posted inWashington D.C. News
Let America read: Banned Wagon Tour to stop in Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia
By Penguin Random House The Banned Wagon will hit the road during Banned Books Week, beginning Oct. 5, for its third annual tour to celebrate the freedom to read and express ideas, highlight the value of free and open access to information, and confront the harms of censorship. Powered by Penguin Random House and presented […]
Posted inU.S. Government
Education Department layoffs gut its civil rights office, leaving discrimination cases in limbo
By Collin BinkleyAP Education Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The Education Department’s civil rights branch is losing nearly half its staff in the Trump administration’s layoffs, effectively gutting an office that already faced a backlog of thousands of complaints from students and families across the nation. Among a total of more than 1,300 layoffs announced March […]
Posted inPOLITICS
Trump’s policy plans signal major shifts for Black communities
Black leaders are concerned that repealing Biden’s pledged HBCU funding and reducing the scope of the Affordable Care Act could hinder efforts to address historical underfunding and health disparities in Black communities, as well as limit the DOJ’s role in addressing police misconduct and civil rights cases.
Posted inNational News
Biden-Harris administration scrubs $6.1 billion in student loans for former art students
The Biden-Harris administration is canceling more than $6.1 billion in student loans for 317,000 individuals who attended Art Institutes, a private, for-profit system of art schools, due to fraudulent practices by the institutes and its parent company, Education Management Corporation.