DOE finds U. perpetuated 'hostile environment' after reviewing more than 400 discrimination claims

On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) revealed that more than 400 cases of alleged discrimination against those with Palestinian, Muslim, Arab, South Asian, Jewish and Israeli ancestry or association with these identities were filed at Rutgers from July 2023 to June 2024, according to a press release. 

The announcement marked the closure of a Title VI investigation of the University that initially opened more than a year ago.

In a 15-page resolution letter, OCR expressed concern about the University's responses to these cases, which OCR wrote were insufficient and inconsiderate of campus safety on a larger scale. This created a "hostile environment," according to OCR — a phrase defined as a compilation of incidents of harassment "so severe or pervasive that it limits or denies a person's ability to participate in or benefit from a recipient's education program or activity." 

An additional resolution agreement outlined actions that OCR determined for the University in an effort to address current and future cases of bias and discrimination on campus.

"Rutgers University has committed to resolution terms that will address serious Title VI noncompliance indicated in their records … that appear to have created a hostile environment in University campuses, inconsistent with the University's federal civil rights obligations," Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine Lhamon said in the release.

The Daily Targum reviewed incidents from OCR's report that took place after Oct. 7, 2023, as well as those of similar investigations conducted at 11 other colleges and universities. The claims varied from controversial statements on social media to federally charged hate crimes.

OCR makes calls on Islamophobia, anti-Palestinian discrimination

Between July 2023 and June 2024, the University received 147 reports of Islamophobia and discrimination against Palestinian, Muslim and Arab individuals.

OCR broke down some of the allegations made in a 57-page Title VI complaint of Palestinian, Muslim and Arab bias and discrimination from April 2024 that came approximately two weeks after a hate crime on the Center for Islamic Life at Rutgers University (CILRU).

One such claim included an alleged incident at Rutgers—Newark in which a Palestinian student described being intentionally hit by a moving car's rear-view mirror in a University parking lot. OCR explained that the University made a decision on the matter solely relying upon the Rutgers University Police Department's (RUPD) judgment of the surveillance footage without further verification, though OCR did not comment on this incident beyond making mention of it. 

Ultimately, OCR did determine that the University exercised unequal treatment in a case where flyers and memorials related to Palestine were removed from Rutgers Law School while similar items unrelated to Palestine were not previously taken down. 

OCR also criticized the University's responses to cases of doxxing and harassment against students of Palestinian, Muslim, Arab and South Asian descent. One student was charged in this case, whereas students who agreed to the doxxing were not charged. 

OCR gives determinations on antisemitism, anti-Israeli bias

Out of 293 claims of antisemitism and anti-Israeli discrimination made between July 2023 and June 2024, the University detailed 104 incidents across the past two academic years. 

The reports included a November 2023 criminal charge around an online death threat against and doxxing of an Israeli member of the Jewish-interest fraternity Alpha Epsilon Pi. While the charged student was not expelled, OCR called upon Rutgers administrators to meet with them and discuss the impacts of their action with further guidance from OCR throughout the process, according to the resolution agreement. 

Allegations also extended to social media, where the events of Oct. 7, 2023, were denied in one case and praised in another. In the former — a post by a student group — University administrators informed a class to restrain from posting their views on the subject online, and in the latter — a post by a professor — the University determined that the post did not reference the University or receive any reports from students or faculty, but it is unknown how the University officially responded.

OCR judged that certain protests, such as the encampment during the Spring 2024 semester, violated University policy and were also a discriminatory hindrance to Jewish community members. Including the encampment, OCR concluded that, in all but one case, the University did not attempt to make amends with Jewish and Israeli students affected by discrimination on campus. 

In response to the Targum's request for comment, a University spokesperson wrote that it does not publicly disclose information about bias investigations but maintained the University's stance against all forms of hate and intolerance and its willingness to cooperate with OCR.

OCR identifies similar issues across other campuses

OCR has opened more than 70 investigations into higher education institutions across the U.S. since Oct. 7, 2023. It has since concluded 12 investigations, including that of Rutgers. 

Most reports included some form of discriminatory insults that often relied on stereotypes, with multiple institutions reporting Palestinian, Arab and Muslim students being called "terrorists." While many incidents have been insults or verbal threats, some have taken on physical manifestations, such as a brick being thrown at the window of a Jewish fraternity house at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), OCR revealed.

Some institutions also saw vandalism in the form of hate symbols and damage to religious or cultural objects. Rutgers, Drexel University and UIUC saw the illustrations of swastikas on campus buildings and the vandalism of mezuzahs, a front door decoration in Jewish households. At Rutgers, the hate crime at the CILRU additionally exposed damage to a Palestinian flag and Islamic art pieces.

Several universities, including Rutgers, particularly struggled to handle incidents of bias on social media. Notably, administration at the University of Michigan determined that social media incidents are "largely going to be protected as free speech" and can typically only be pursued through informal processes, according to the University of Michigan's OCR investigation. 

Staffing and training are also among the issues that arose across multiple university campuses. In the case of Brown University, OCR found that different Brown University administrators displayed inconsistencies in their responses to reports. 

Furthermore, a complaint against the City University of New York (CUNY) allegedly claimed that the university lacks system-wide training against antisemitism and does not track reports of antisemitism. OCR corroborated that the CUNY system does not have a standardized antisemitism training program but did not appear to support or deny the claim about incident tracking in its resolution letter. 

But some universities that underwent investigations also received praise from OCR in other aspects of their administrative processes. Brown University, for example, saw positive feedback on its measuring of campus climate. Additionally, Temple University — which employed a special advisor on antisemitism and formed a Blue Ribbon Commission on Antisemitism and University Responses in 2022 — was commended for its swift and appropriate responses to many, but not all, allegations of discrimination. 

Investigation paves way for amendments to U. policy

OCR gave Rutgers nine action items for the near future in order to maintain its Title VI compliance. If the University does not follow through on the provisions in the established manner and time, it risks further escalation to the U.S. Department of Justice or loss of federal funding, per OCR policy, a Department of Education spokesperson informed the Targum.

Several items were related to the University's adoption of increased transparency measures in its Policies and Procedures, such as an explanation of student resources and the investigatory process, as well as a contact for reporting incidents. OCR also ordered an audit of incident reports related to discrimination against Jewish, Israeli, Palestinian, Muslim, Arab and South Asian individuals at the University. 

Additional changes include discrimination training for students, employees, internal investigators and RUPD, as well as listening sessions and surveys of the campus climate. It also instructed the University to add a series of statements regarding Title VI compliance, including examples of discrimination, to existing policy.

In a statement, Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-5), who has been particularly vocal about antisemitism in New Jersey and at higher education institutions, expressed gratitude for OCR's investigation and the University's adoption of the actions set forth by OCR's resolution agreement.

"OCR looks forward to the change that will come for Rutgers University as a result of this agreement and to ongoing work with the University to ensure its compliance," Lhamon further commented in the announcement.