1:30 pm EST – 2:30 pm EST
Past Event
1:30 pm – 2:30 pm EST
Governance Studies
Brown Center on Education Policy
On February 14, 2025, the U.S. Department of Education released a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) declaring that any use of race in decision making related to school and college practices and policies violates federal civil rights law. This would include any race-conscious initiatives, including diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs or using race-neutral approaches to promote racial diversity (e.g., in selective school admissions practices). However, according to legal experts, the DCL runs contrary to federal law and recent Supreme Court decisions. With that context in mind, how will the guidance letter impact the department’s civil rights enforcement work? And how should school, state, and college leaders think about civil rights compliance given the guidance’s expansiveness and questionable legal foundation?
On February 28, the Brown Center on Education Policy at Brookings hosted a webinar with education and legal scholars, including experts in education civil rights enforcement, to discuss the legality of the February 14 guidance letter and related actions. The discussion focused on the potential implications for the schools, districts, states, and colleges and universities that are required to comply with federal civil rights law as a condition of receiving federal funding.
Viewers submitted questions for speakers by emailing [email protected] and via Twitter at @BrookingsGov by using #TitleVIDCL.
Moderator
Related Content
Rachel M. Perera
February 24, 2025
Rachel M. Perera
February 13, 2025
Katharine Meyer, Rachel M. Perera, Sarah Reber, Jon Valant
February 20, 2025
Katharine Meyer, Rachel M. Perera, Sarah Reber, Jon Valant
February 20, 2025
Governance Studies
U.S. States and Territories
Brown Center on Education Policy
Urwa Naeem, Ana María Raad, Claudia Hui, Modupe (Mo) Olateju
February 25, 2025
Rachel M. Perera
February 24, 2025
Cara Jackson, Daphna Bassok, Beth Boulay, Michal Kurlaender, Lindsay Page, Elizabeth Tipton
February 24, 2025
Get the latest from Brookings
The Brookings Institution is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C. Our mission is to conduct in-depth, nonpartisan research to improve policy and governance at local, national, and global levels.
Copyright 2025 The Brookings Institution