Universities facing backlog of bias claims

U.S. Education Department is reviewing fewer complaints of sexual violence and discrimination

- BY COLLIN BINKLEY

Before President Trump's administration started dismantling the Education Department, the agency served as a powerful enforcer in cases of sexual violence at schools and universities. It brought the weight of the government against schools that mishandled sexual assault complaints involving students.

That work quickly is fading away.

The department's Office for Civil Rights was gutted in Trump's mass layoffs last year, leaving half as many lawyers to investigate complaints of discrimination based on race, sex or disability in schools. Those who remain face a backlog of more than 25,000 cases.

Investigations have dwindled. Before the layoffs in March, the office opened dozens of sexual violence investigations a year. Since then it has opened fewer than 10 nationwide, according to internal data obtained by the Associated Press.

Yet the Trump administration has doubled down on sexual discrimination cases of another kind. Its officials have used Title IX, a 1972 gender equality law, against schools that make accommodations for transgender students and athletes. The Office for Civil Rights has opened nearly 50 such investigations since Trump took office a year ago.

Even before the layoffs, critics said the office was understaffed and moved too slowly. Now, many firms that handle Title IX cases have stopped filing complaints, calling it a dead end.

"It almost feels like you're up against the void," said Katie McKay, a lawyer at a New York firm that represents victims.

"It feels like a big question mark right now," she said. "How are we supposed to hold a school accountable once it has messed up?"

An Education Department spokesperson said the office is working through its caseload, blaming President Biden's administration for leaving a backlog and rewriting Title IX rules to protect LGBTQ+ students. Trump officials rolled back those rules.