Loyola President Xavier Cole emailed the Loyola community in response to a recent letter issued by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. The letter, sent to all schools and entities that receive federal funding from the Department of Education, clarifies the “nondiscrimination obligations” that schools hold, claiming that American educational institutions have “discriminated against students on the basis of race.” 

The letter goes on to state that universities have used race as a factor in admissions, financial aid, hiring, training, and other institutional programming. It further argues that the practices have discriminated against primarily White and Asian students, and have been justified “under the banner of ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’, smuggling racial stereotypes and explicit race-consciousness into everyday training, programming, and discipline.”

If universities do not comply with the new interpretation of the civil rights law by Feb. 28, they “face potential loss of federal funding.”

Earlier today, Cole sent out a message in response with a highlighted message, stated below:

“Loyola University New Orleans, a Jesuit and Catholic institution of higher education, welcomes students of diverse backgrounds and prepares them to lead meaningful lives with and for others; to pursue truth, wisdom, and virtue; and to work for a more just world.”

According to Cole, Loyola University is still processing the implications of the letter, but is and always has followed federal and state laws. Loyola administration is “confident our programs and policies are inclusive of all of our students, faculty, and staff and will continue to ensure all members of our community are educated and cared for, as “cura personalis” demands.”