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Over 50 U.S. colleges and universities, including three in New York, are under investigation for allegedly violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, according to theU.S. Department of Education.

In a follow-up to the department’s Office of Civil Rights’ “Dear Colleague” letteradditional letters were sent to 45 schools informing them they were being investigated for their alleged partnership with The Ph.D. Project, six have “allegedly awarded impermissible race-based scholarships” and one has “allegedly administered a program that segregates students on the basis of race,” the officeannounced in a news releaseFriday.

“The Department is working to reorient civil rights enforcement to ensure all students are protected from illegal discrimination … today’s announcement expands our efforts to ensure universities are not discriminating against their students based on race and race stereotypes,” U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said. “Students must be assessed according to merit and accomplishment, not prejudged by the color of their skin. We will not yield on this commitment.”

Here’s what to know.

What does Title VI of the Civil Rights Act entail?

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 bans race, color and national origin-based discrimination in programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance,according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

The DOE’s Office for Civil Rights enforces Title VI “as it applies to programs or activities that receive financial assistance from the (DOE),” thedepartment’s websitestates, which includes colleges and universities.

What is the ‘Dear Colleague’ letter about?

The “Dear Colleague” letterwhich was issued on Feb. 14 by the DOE’s Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Craig Trainor, advised all educational institutions to ensure their policies and actions comply with the existing civil rights law, stop all efforts to get around bans on the use of race and end all reliance on programs being used to evade banned uses of race within 14 days.

Schools could face a loss of federal funding if they don’t comply, which has already been seen in New York as theTrumpadministration pulled about $400 million in federal funds from Columbia University earlier this month,USA TODAY reportedciting the school’s “continued inaction in the face of persistent harassment of Jewish students.”

What is The Ph.D. Project?

The Ph.D. Project’s mission is “to expand the pool of workplace talent by developing business school faculty who encourage, mentor, and support tomorrow’s leaders,” according to the program’s website. In last week’s news releasethe DOE says the organization limits eligibility based on the race of its participants.

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Which New York colleges were named in the latest DOE investigation?

Here are the three New York schools named in the letters:

• Cornell University and New York University for “allegedly engaging in race exclusionary practices in graduate programs.”
• Ithaca College for “allegedly impermissible race-based scholarships and race-based segregation.”

“Ithaca College does not discriminate on the basis of race in the awarding of the scholarships cited in the Title VI complaint that is the basis of the Department of Education’s investigation,” an Ithaca College spokesperson said in a written statement Monday. “We are confident that our programs and resources are in compliance with applicable Civil Rights laws.”

The USA TODAY Network has also reached out to Cornell University and New York University for comment but neither have immediately responded.

Which other U.S. schools were named in the latest DOE investigation?

Outside of New York, the other schools the DOE reported sending the letters to for “allegedly engaging in race exclusionary practices in graduate programs” include:

• Arizona State University — Main Campus
• Boise State University
• Cal Poly Humboldt
• California State University — San Bernadino
• Carnegie Mellon University
• Clemson University
• Duke University
• Emory University
• George Mason University
• Georgetown University
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Montana State University — Bozeman
• Rice University
• Rutgers University
• The Ohio State University — Main Campus
• Towson University
• Tulane University
• University of Arkansas — Fayetteville
• University of California — Berkeley
• University of Chicago
• University of Cincinnati — Main Campus
• University of Colorado—Colorado Springs
• University of Delaware
• University of Kansas
• University of Kentucky
• University of Michigan — Ann Arbor
• University of Minnesota — Twin Cities
• University of Nebraska at Omaha
• University of New Mexico — Main Campus
• University of North Dakota — Main Campus
• University of North Texas — Denton
• University of Notre Dame
• University of Nevada — Las Vegas
• University of Oregon
• University of Rhode Island
• University of Utah
• University of Washington — Seattle
• University of Wisconsin — Madison
• University of Wyoming
• Vanderbilt University
• Washington State University
• Washington University in St. Louis
• Yale University

And the other schools the DOE reported sending the letters to for “allegedly impermissible race-based scholarships and race-based segregation” are as follows:

• Grand Valley State University
• New England College of Optometry
• University of Alabama at Birmingham
• University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
• University of South Florida
• University of Oklahoma, Tulsa School of Community Medicine

What to know: Eight NY colleges under federal antisemitism investigation

What to know about the DOE’s antisemitism investigation

Sixty U.S. colleges and universities, including eight in New York, are under investigation for antisemitic discrimination and harassmentaccording to theU.S. Department of Education.

Letters were sent to the schools informing them of the investigation, the department’s Office of Civil Rightsannounced in a news release last week, and warned them of “potential enforcement actions if they do not fulfill obligations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act to protect Jewish students on campus, including uninterrupted access to campus facilities and educational opportunities.”

Columbia University, Cornell University, Sarah Lawrence College, Binghamton University, Rockland Community College, Purchase College, The New School and Union College were all named in the DOE’s news release.

Emily Barnes reports on consumer-related issues for the USA TODAY Network’s New York Connect Team, focusing on scam and recall-related topics. Follow her on X and Instagram@byemilybarnes.Get in touch atebarnes@gannett.com.