U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi testifies before a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on U.S. President Donald Trump's budget request for the Department of Justice, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 25, 2025. REUTERS/Nathan Howard
The Trump administration is under fire from state lawmakers in Virginia over its investigation of George Mason University as it seeks to root out diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and discrimination at higher education institutions.
The federal government launched a fourth investigation in as many weeks into the university, The Washington Post reported Tuesday afternoon. The Justice Department informed the university Monday it plans to investigate possible racial discrimination in policies around admissions and student benefits. That probe came just days after the DOJ launched an investigation into how the university hires and promotes employees.
“Racial segregation regarding access to programs, facilities, or any facet of the student life is illegal,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon told the university in a letter obtained by the Post. “Preferential treatment toward or advantages given to one group of students (and the denial of the same to other groups of students) on the basis of race is illegal. A school administration’s deliberate indifference to a racially hostile educational environment is illegal.”
The DOJ said in a news release it also plans to look into the university's response to antisemitism on campus.
The targeting of George Mason earned swift criticism from seven Democratic state lawmakers who are Jewish or who have Jewish relatives. In a letter sent to the head of George Mason’s governing board, the lawmakers said, "We also know first-hand that George Mason University is a welcoming campus that combats antisemitism and other forms of bigotry."
They said they were “beyond ashamed to witness the misguided and unjust assault on George Mason University.”