WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration has filed a lawsuit against Harvard University, claiming the prestigious institution has failed to provide crucial admissions records. This legal action aims to ensure that Harvard ceases any lingering use of affirmative action in its enrollment practices.
Filed in federal court in Massachusetts, the Justice Department's lawsuit contends that Harvard has obstructed federal investigations into potential discrimination in its admissions process. The Justice Department is requesting a court order compelling Harvard to submit the requested records.
Harmeet Dhillon, leading the Civil Rights Division at the Justice Department, voiced concerns regarding Harvard's compliance. If Harvard has stopped discriminating, it should be eager to provide the data that would prove it, she commented.
Harvard has not yet responded to the lawsuit.
This latest legal challenge from the Trump administration follows earlier tensions with Harvard, which has faced significant funding cuts and other penalties after rejecting previous demands from the administration. Accusations of anti-Jewish bias on campus have been cited by Trump officials as justification for their actions against the university. Harvard officials, on their part, claim they are being retaliated against for not adhering to the administration's political agenda. Legal battles continue as the administration appeals court rulings that have favored Harvard in prior cases.
The Justice Department commenced its compliance review into Harvard’s admissions practices in April last year, correlating with a series of sweeping demands from the White House. These included requests for a comprehensive data set covering admissions data for undergraduate, medical, and law school applicants.
The demands encompass various data points such as grades, test scores, essays, extracurricular activities, admissions outcomes, and the racial and ethnic backgrounds of applicants. The deadline for Harvard to provide this data was set for April 25, 2025, but the university reportedly has not complied.
Officials from the Justice Department stress the importance of this data to assess whether Harvard has ceased considering race in its admissions decisions, especially following the Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling that prohibited such affirmative action practices.
The broader implications of this lawsuit resonate throughout the academic landscape, with the White House pushing for increased scrutiny of admissions practices across universities in the U.S. Education Department plans are in place to gather more comprehensive admissions data from institutions as part of this initiative.
Initially, it seemed that tensions between the Trump administration and Harvard were easing after the president suggested they were nearing a deal on federal funding. Nevertheless, the dispute has reignited after Trump recently demanded a staggering $1 billion from Harvard as part of any potential agreement, significantly increasing previous demands.
