Rutgers University is the latest institution of higher education that has settled with the U.S. Department of Education over discrimination allegations by Jewish, Israeli, Arab, and Muslim students. The alleged discrimination was on the basis of national origin, including shared ancestry, throughout the university’s four campuses: New Brunswick, Newark (including Rutgers Law School), Camden, and Rutgers Biomedical Health Sciences (RBHS), since October 2023.
Between July 2023 and July 2024, the university received more than 400 complaints. Of those reports, 293 were by students with Jewish ancestry and/or Israeli national origin and ancestry, and 147 reports were by students with shared Palestinian, Arab, South Asian, and/or Muslim ancestry.
The investigation found that Rutgers likely operated a hostile environment without redress as required under Title VI.
Alleged Discrimination Incidents at Rutgers
- A student posted on social media, encouraging violence against an Israeli student, identifying where the Israeli student lived.
- Vandalism to a student’s dorm room door that included a drawing of a swastika and defacement of a mezuzah.
- Threats against members of a Jewish fraternity, because they are Jewish.
- Protest chants on campus that made Jewish students feel unsafe, including, “Say it loud, say it clear, we don’t want Zionists here.”
- Jewish students were prohibited from entering an encampment at the New Brunswick CLU, in April 2024.
- Egging of the Bildner Center for Jewish Studies.
- Vandalism to the university’s Center for Islamic Life.
- Rhe removal of a Palestinian memorial, flyers, posters, and flags placed around the university’s Law School (Newark CLU), while the university record documents it did not remove flyers, posters, flags, and other items placed on campus by other students unrelated to pro-Palestinian activities since October 2023.
- Doxxing of students based on their actual or perceived national origin/ethnicity (including shared Palestinian, Arab, South Asian, and/or Muslim ancestry), or their association with this national origin/ethnicity.
To resolve the Title VI complaint, Rutgers has agreed to:
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- Reviewing its policies and procedures that would affect the provisions and enforcement of Title VI to ensure that they adequately address the Title VI prohibition on discrimination based on race, color, and national origin, including discrimination based on a student’s actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics.
- Issuing a statement to all university students and employees that the university does not tolerate acts of discrimination, including harassment, on the basis of national origin, including shared ancestry and ethnic characteristics (including shared Jewish, Israeli, Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, and/or South Asian ancestry and/or the association with these national origins/ancestries), and that the university will take all necessary actions, to address and ameliorate such discrimination.
- Reviewing complaints and reports alleging discrimination, including harassment, on the basis of national origin, including shared Jewish, Israeli, Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, and/or South Asian ancestry, or association with these national origins/ancestries, to determine if further action is needed to provide an equitable resolution of each reported incident for academic years 2023-2024 and 2024-2025.
- Reviewing, for academic year 2023-2024, all students, and/or student groups, whom the university notified of potential violations of the Standards and Discipline Policy, referred for suspension, suspended, expelled, and/or referred to law enforcement to redress different treatment as necessary, and reporting results of these reviews to OCR for review and approval.
- Providing training to employees responsible for investigating complaints and other reports of discrimination, including harassment, based on national origin/shared ancestry or association with the national origin/shared ancestry, to ensure thorough and impartial investigations, including that the investigators know how to identify relevant witnesses to interview and how to conduct interviews about such harassment.
- Providing annual training for Campus Police Officers who will respond to and/or investigate incidents at the university on the university’s nondiscrimination obligations under Title VI, how to work with the university’s students in a manner consistent with the requirements of Title VI addressed in this agreement, and how to ensure accurate collection and reporting of data or information, including complaints, regarding public safety officer-student interactions.
- Providing training to employees responsible for investigating complaints and other reports of discrimination, including harassment, based on national origin/shared ancestry or association with the national origin/shared ancestry, to ensure thorough and impartial investigations, including that the investigators know how to identify relevant witnesses to interview and how to conduct interviews about such harassment and whether it created a hostile educational environment.
- Providing training to all employees and students addressing the university’s prohibition of discrimination based on race, color, and national origin, including harassment based on shared ancestry and ethnic characteristics.
- Conducting listening sessions between relevant university administrators and representatives from relevant affinity groups to identify any needed additional university responses.
- Developing and administering a climate assessment to students and employees in the university to evaluate the climate with respect to national origin, including shared Jewish, Israeli, Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, and/or South Asian ancestry, or association with these national origins/ancestries, and sharing with OCR for review and approval any university responses.
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The resolution letter and resolution agreement are available on the Office for Civil Rights website.
