Federal officials launch civil rights investigation into Portland schools

The Department of Education planned to probe the Portland, Ore., public school system for suspected civil rights violations, according to a Tuesday statement. A complaint filed with the department’s Office of Civil Rights accused the school of violating Title VI, which protects against racial or ethnic discrimination in federally funded education programs.

Education Secretary Linda McMahon released a Tuesday statement claiming Portland officials allocated tens of millions of dollars to academically support black students, despite other student groups struggling with similar challenges. Discrimination under the guise of equity is still discrimination, McMahon wrote. Education should be defined by excellence, not exclusion, according to a separate Tuesday statement from the department.

What made investigators suspect violations? Federal officials specifically flagged Portland’s Center for Black Student Excellence as a source of discrimination. The center offered black students year-round academic interventions for math and literacy, along with tutoring, food assistance, and transportation support. The center’s guiding principles explicitly pledge to “center Blackness unapologetically,” education officials noted.

Federal officials only provided black students with extra academic amenities, despite data showing comparable academic struggles among other ethnic groups, according to the Department of Education. About 17% of black students meet third-grade reading levels, comparable with the 17.6% of Native American students and 16.7% of Pacific Islanders, according to the department, citing what it said was 2021–2022 data.

Just under 80% of black students graduated from high school in the 2021-2022 school year, compared to the graduation rates of 62% for Native Americans and about 74% for Hispanic students, the department said. Despite the data, the Portland school board rejected a proposal to allocate $40 million to a Native Student Success Center, while funneling tens of millions into Center for Black Student Excellence funding, education officials alleged.

How have school officials responded? WORLD reached out to various Portland Public Schools officials for comment. This story will be updated with any responses received.