WASHINGTON — (AP) — The Education Department's Office for Civil Rights is known best for enforcing the right to disability services across America's schools. But under President Donald Trump, it's taking a frontline role in his political battles.
Trump appointees have halted thousands of pending cases while they open new investigations aligned with the president's campaign promises. Career staffers have been sidelined and pressured to quit, and those who remain are being ordered to refocus priorities on antisemitism, transgender issues and anti-DEI complaints.
A memo Friday from the civil rights office's chief announced antisemitism cases are now the top priority, taking aim at colleges where pro-Palestinian protests brought accusations of anti-Jewish bias. That followed a decision to cut $400 million in federal money going to Columbia University, where on Saturday immigration officials arrested a Palestinian activist who was involved in leading student protests.
Hanging in the balance are the types of cases the office traditionally has focused on — students with disabilities who need services they aren't getting, or students facing harassment tied to their skin color.
It's normal for new presidential administrations to pause civil rights cases while they get acclimated, but this transition brought a longer and more rigid freeze than others. Trump officials lifted the freeze for disability cases on Feb. 20, and last week, new Education Secretary Linda McMahon said all cases could resume as normal.
During Trump’s first month in office, the Office for Civil Rights resolved about 50 cases, according to a staffer who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retribution. By comparison, the office resolved more than 3,000 complaints in the same window of Trump’s first term, and almost 500 under former President Joe Biden.
Even the most urgent cases, which are traditionally granted exceptions, sat idle during the freeze. Staff lawyers were told not to respond to outside calls or emails, leaving families in the dark.
Another staff member at the civil rights office described desperate emails from parents whose schools refused to make accommodations for their children’s disabilities. “We were just ignoring their emails,” said the person, who also spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
Tylisa Guyton of Taylor, Michigan, filed a complaint with the Office for Civil Rights on Jan. 20 over her 16-year-old son’s repeated suspensions from a suburban Detroit school district, alleging a white administrator was targeting him and a group of other Black children. The teen has been out of school since Dec. 4. Even as investigations resume, she has heard nothing from the civil rights agency.
“He’s still asking every day, ‘When can I go back to school?’” Guyton said of her son.
The memo Friday told staffers antisemitism would be an “investigative and enforcement priority.” It added the memo should not be interpreted as "‘deprioritizing’ any other form of OCR enforcement activity.” But staffers said that’s the most likely outcome as dwindling ranks of employees face heavier caseloads tied to the president’s agenda.
On Monday, the Education Department sent a letter to 60 colleges warning they could lose federal money if they fail to make campuses safe for Jewish students. The list includes Harvard, Cornell and many others where pro-Palestinian protests led to accusations of anti-Jewish bias.
Politics usually play into the office’s priorities to some degree, and Republicans similarly accused Biden officials of going too far when they opened cases into COVID-19 mask bans or in support of transgender students. But several longtime staffers said this is the first time they’ve seen cases tied to political agendas edge out their everyday work.
Trump has called for a total shutdown of the Education Department, calling it a "con job" infiltrated by leftists. At her Senate hearing, McMahon said the civil rights office might be better served if it moves to the Justice Department.
Some cases are moving forward, but others appear to be stalled, Marcie Lipsitt, said a special education advocate in Michigan.
“I’ve said to everyone, ’You’re going to have to fight harder for accountability because there will be no accountability at the U.S. Department of Ed, if there is a U.S. Department of Ed,” she said.
At the same time, Trump's officials have continued to open their own "directed investigations" — proactive inquiries that depart from the office's typical work responding to complaints. The office has opened more than a dozen such investigations, many aimed at pressuring universities to stop allowing transgender athletes or to take a harder stance against pro-Palestinian protesters.
It adds up to more work for fewer employees at the office of about 500 workers. Staffers say field offices across the country were hit after dozens of department workers were put on leave in response to Trump’s orders against diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Many others took buyouts pushed by the Trump administration, leaving some field offices without administrators in key leadership jobs.
Minor changes to the office’s policies could also carry outsize impact. Complaints to the office can’t move forward unless the filer signs a consent form allowing their name to be disclosed during the investigation. For years, the office sent reminders if the form was not submitted — parents often didn't know it was required. But an updated case manual from the Trump administration drops the reminders.
Staffers say it means more cases will be dismissed on a technicality.
Some special education advocates have begun filing more cases with state agencies, said Brandi Tanner, an Atlanta-based psychologist and special education advocate. In conversations at a recent conference in California, disability advocates expressed uncertainty and anxiety, Tanner said.
“’It’s kind of like, we’re very scared about what else is going to continue to come down the pike,” she said. “Are students going to lose their rights?”
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Hollingsworth reported from Mission, Kansas.
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