Legal

  • Kentucky State University gate
    Image attribution tooltip
    Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Kentucky State gets OK for program cuts amid state-mandated overhaul

    The state’s higher education authority signed off on the narrowed offerings even as a lawsuit contests the university’s transformation.

    By • June 15, 2026
  • A judge's gavel is shown in a close-up photo sitting on a pedestal on a desk in a courtoom
    Image attribution tooltip
    Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Trump administration appeals ruling against $100K H-1B visa fee

    The fee has caused concern among higher education experts that it would hamper colleges’ ability to recruit foreign scholars and instructors. 

    By • June 11, 2026
  • Donald Trump speaks while signing an executive order at his desk.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Win McNamee via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Coalition asks judge to halt Trump’s anti-DEI contractor order

    The group, led by the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education, filed a lawsuit over the executive order in April.

    By Emilie Shumway • June 10, 2026
  • Sparsely spaced pedestrians on quad green in fall in front of classical building.
    Image attribution tooltip
    The image by Dirk DBQ is licensed under CC BY 2.0
    Image attribution tooltip

    University of Iowa cannot change endowed scholarship for Black students, state high court rules

    The institution sought to change the scholarship's eligibility to first-generation students, citing the U.S. Supreme Court's ban on race-conscious admission.

    By • June 8, 2026
  • .
    Image attribution tooltip
    Retrieved from Declan M. Martin.
    Image attribution tooltip

    Nebraska law offering in-state tuition to undocumented students struck down

    The federal judge’s ruling marks the fourth time a U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit has ended such policies under the Trump administration.

    By • June 4, 2026
  • A group of medical professionals walk down the hallway together.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    DOJ opens 15 civil rights probes into medical school admissions

    The agency last month accused two highly selective medical schools of unlawfully giving Black and Hispanic applicants an advantage.

    By • June 4, 2026
  • .
    Image attribution tooltip
    The image by Kai NeSmith is licensed under CC BY 4.0
    Image attribution tooltip

    University of Alabama nabs court win in lawsuit over student magazines

    A federal judge rejected the plaintiffs’ request to reinstate the shuttered publications while the legal battle over their closure continues.

    By • June 3, 2026
  • .
    Image attribution tooltip
    The image by Ajay Suresh is licensed under CC BY 4.0
    Image attribution tooltip

    West Point speech policies paused for civilian faculty by federal judge

    U.S. District Judge Cathy Seibel called one of the military college's rules a "broad and standardless intrusion" on civilian faculty's constitutional rights.

    By • May 29, 2026
  • A group of police officers enter the protest encampment on UCLA's campus.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Eric Thayer via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    DOJ lawsuit accuses UCLA of ignoring antisemitism on campus

    The agency sued the University of California, arguing its Los Angeles campus was “deliberately indifferent” to harassment of Jewish and Israeli students.

    By • May 26, 2026
  • Nicholas Kent
    Image attribution tooltip
    U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from Flickr.
    Image attribution tooltip

    States sue over Education Department’s professional student definition

    The lawsuit contends that the agency imposed requirements not found in statute that limit federal loan access for graduate nursing and other fields.

    By • May 20, 2026
  • Students walk on an outside pathway next to a Columbia University building.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Appeals court dismisses AAUP, AFT lawsuit over Columbia funding freeze

    The case was ruled moot nearly a year after the university cut a deal with the Trump administration to restore most of its federal grants and contracts. 

    By • May 19, 2026
  • Gates on Yale University's campus.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Steve Rosenbach via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    DOJ alleges Yale’s medical school discriminates against applicants

    The U.S. Department of Justice accused the Ivy League institution of unlawfully giving Black and Hispanic students an advantage in admissions. 

    By • May 14, 2026
  • Bernie Sanders speaks at a rally.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Kayla Bartkowski via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    OCR resolved only 1% of cases in 2025, report shows

    The findings from Sen. Bernie Sanders' office show only 112 resolution agreements were reached and none addressed antisemitism or Islamophobia.

    By Naaz Modan • May 14, 2026
  • Kentucky State University gate
    Image attribution tooltip
    Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Students, alumni sue to block Kentucky State University overhaul

    Converting the historically Black university into a polytechnic institution violates Kentucky’s desegregation commitments, plaintiffs argued this week.

    By • May 13, 2026
  • A student walks in front of arches, with a campus building in the background, on a college campus.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Kevork Djansezian via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    UCLA medical school faces federal civil rights accusation

    The Trump administration on Wednesday alleged that the highly selective school illegally gives preference to Black and Hispanic applicants.

    By • May 7, 2026
  • A person wearing a black hat and purple jacket and scar speaks into a podium microphone on a winter day
    Image attribution tooltip
    Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    National Education Association faces EEOC antisemitism complaint

    The Brandeis Center alleged that the educators union promoted "a hostile environment” for Jewish members by allowing pro-Palestinian activity.

    By Naaz Modan • May 7, 2026
  • A green lawn in the fore- and mid-ground, and a series of brick, academic-looking buildings in the farground.
    Image attribution tooltip
    The image by MonsieurNapoléon is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
    Image attribution tooltip

    Smith College faces Title IX probe over policy of admitting trans students

    The U.S. Department of Education is taking aim at the decade-old policy at the women’s college following a civil rights complaint from a conservative group.

    By • May 5, 2026
  • A close up of the white dome on a government building.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    DOJ revives fight against Minnesota’s in-state tuition for undocumented students

    The Trump administration is taking its lawsuit against the Democrat-led state to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

    By • May 5, 2026
  • A stack of programs for the ABA's conference sits on a table.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Kate Tornone/Higher Ed Dive
    Image attribution tooltip

    ABA settles claim alleging diversity scholarship fund harmed White students

    The American Bar Association said the agreement preserves its “unwavering commitment to fostering an inclusive and trusted justice system.”

    By Ryan Golden • April 30, 2026
  • Barus and Holly, Tanner Auditorium, Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, building security
    Image attribution tooltip
    Spencer Platt / Staff via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Students sue Brown University, say lax building security enabled shooting

    The institution had no access control in a building in which a former student opened fire, killing two and injuring nine, lawsuits allege. 

    By Robert Freedman • April 29, 2026
  • People ride bikes on Stanford University's campus
    Image attribution tooltip
    Justin Sullivan / Staff via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Stanford faces Education Department probe over racial discrimination allegations

    The investigation centers on a program that aimed to professionally and financially support K-12 teachers seeking certification.

    By • April 29, 2026
  • Campus Hall at the University of Pennsylvania
    Image attribution tooltip
    The image by Bestbudbrian is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
    Image attribution tooltip

    Penn wins temporary court block on turning over Jewish employee data to EEOC

    U.S. District Judge Gerald Pappert previously gave the university until Friday to turn over swathes of contact information and anonymous survey responses.

    By • April 28, 2026
  • GenAI, fake legal citations, monk, texas federal court
    Image attribution tooltip
    Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Court blocks Education Department’s data demands for over 170 more colleges

    The ruling expands an earlier pause on the agency’s collection of extensive race and sex admissions data for public colleges in 17 states.

    By • April 27, 2026
  • A massive bronze bear statue stands in front of a campus building on a nice, sunny day.
    Image attribution tooltip
    The image by Keith8404 is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
    Image attribution tooltip

    Missouri State faces lawsuit over bias response policy

    The public university said that it disbanded a contested Bias Response Team last month, a decision that "predates any litigation.”

    By • April 23, 2026
  • Jim Pillen speaks into a microphone.
    Image attribution tooltip
    The image by Matt Johnson is licensed under CC BY 2.0
    Image attribution tooltip

    Nebraska joins DOJ effort to end in-state tuition for undocumented students

    The Republican-led state could become the fourth to side with the Trump administration in court to successfully roll back these benefits.

    By • April 22, 2026