In November, a complaint was filed with the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) alleging that Lafayette College failed to act on incidents of harassment on campus following the October 7th attacks in the Middle East.
The resulting investigation into the Easton school has been resolved, according to the OCR. The resolution agreement ensures the college’s future compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which gives schools the responsibility of providing a discrimination-free environment.
Lafayette agrees to review its response to all discrimination complaints from the past school year, provide the OCR with documentation about its response to all complaints over the next two years, revise policies to ensure consistency with Title VI, and provide training to staff and students about Title VI and non-discrimination policies.
According to the OCR, the college did engage in response efforts for on-campus cases of antisemitism and Islamophobia, but they “nonetheless misapplied the legal standard” and failed to respond to harassment on social media that students claimed created a hostile campus environment.
Following initial reports of the investigation, Lafayette President Nicole Hurd released a statement calling the civil rights complaint “concerning” and said the college would fully cooperate with the examination. In response to the resolution, Hurd made a statement highlighting the college’s care for the matter and promised the administration “will follow through fully on these obligations.”
Lafayette was one of seven colleges and universities being reviewed for complaints of antisemitism and Islamophobia.
The agreement between Lafayette and the OCR doesn’t constitute an admission of liability from the college or a determination that they violated any OCR regulations.
