Federal authorities say CUNY and the University of Michigan have failed to combat anti-Semitic and anti-Palestinian incidents

The Department of Education said on Monday that both the City University of New York (CUNY) and the University of Michigan failed to meet federal standards in dealing with recent anti-Semitic and anti-Palestinian incidents on their campuses.

Both universities have agreed to resolutions to resolve the complaints after the two universities were found to be in violation of Title VI.

The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) reviewed 75 complaints against the University of Michigan covering the period from the 2022-23 school year through this February.

“OCR found no evidence that the university has met its requirements under Title VI to assess whether incidents individually or cumulatively created a hostile environment for students, faculty, or staff, and if so, to take reasonably appropriate steps to end the hostile environment, remedy its effects, and prevent recurrence,” the office said.

The office cited an incident in October when a protester on campus chanted “Nazi liberation” as an example, but records do not indicate that the university took any steps to resolve the matter other than forwarding the reports to its public affairs office.

In response to the investigation, the school has committed to several steps, including reviewing records from this period to ensure equitable resolution is found for each case, reporting incidents of discrimination to the office during the 2024–25 and 2025–26 school years, revising Title VI policies and training, and conducting a campus climate assessment.

Meanwhile, according to the OCR, CUNY failed to respond in a timely manner to incidents of anti-Semitism and discrimination against people of Palestinian, Arab, Muslim and/or South Asian ancestry arising from an investigation dating back to 2020. The university agreed to reopen some cases and provide the new findings to the OCR, provide updated Title VI training to staff, and also conduct a campus climate survey.

“Hate has no place on our college campuses – ever. Unfortunately, we have witnessed a number of extremely troubling incidents over the past few months. There is no doubt that this is a difficult moment for school communities across the country. The recent commitments by the University of Michigan and CUNY represent a positive step forward. The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights continues to hold schools to compliance with civil rights standards, including by investigating allegations of discrimination or harassment based on shared Jewish and shared Palestinian or Muslim ancestry,” Secretary Miguel Cardona said in a statement.

“We will continue to work with school leaders, educators and students across the country to ensure everyone has a safe learning environment,” Cardona added.

The decisions come after the OCR launched dozens of investigations into colleges and universities for anti-Semitic or anti-Palestinian incidents during the 2023-24 academic school year, particularly in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza.

The OCR can punish schools by withdrawing federal funding, but most investigations end in settlements with the universities.

Updated at 1:30 p.m. ET

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