Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.), the new chair of the U.S. House Education and Workforce Committee, criticized the U.S. Department of Education’s recent agreements with several universities accused of violating Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
“It’s disgraceful that in the final days of the Biden-Harris administration, the Department of Education is letting universities, including Rutgers, five University of California system campuses including UCLA, and Johns Hopkins, off the hook for their failures to address campus antisemitism,” Walberg said on Thursday.
“The toothless agreements shield schools from real accountability,” he continued, adding that the “so-called” resolutions fail to fully resolve the discrimination complaints brought against the universities.
“The department is shamefully abandoning its obligation to protect Jewish students, faculty, and staff and undermining the incoming administration,” he said.
Walberg urged the incoming Trump administration to “closely examine these agreements and explore options to impose real consequences on schools, which could include giving complainants the opportunity to appeal these weak settlements.”
He stated that no additional complaints should be settled with the Education Department before U.S. President-elect Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20.
