George Mason University Facing Federal Civil Rights Investigation

FAIRFAX CITY, VA — The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights is investigating George Mason University over alleged civil rights violations in the school's hiring practices, expanding a national campaign against diversity policies to Virginia’s largest public university.

In a statement, the Education Department said it opened the investigation based on complaints from multiple professors who claim the university uses race in university policies, including hiring and promotion, and favors underrepresented groups.

The complaint also targets GMU President Gregory Washington, whom officials said issued guidance on hiring faculty and staff based on race rather than credentials.

“Despite the leadership of George Mason University claiming that it does not discriminate on the basis of race, it appears that its hiring and promotion policies and practices from 2020 to the present, implemented under the guise of so-called ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion,’ not only allow but champion illegal racial preferencing in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964," Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor said in a statement.

Trainor continued, "This kind of pernicious and widespread discrimination — packaged as ‘anti-racism’ — was allowed to flourish under the Biden administration, but it will not be tolerated by this one."

The investigation marks an expansion of the Trump administration's campaign to reshape higher education, which until recently focused on elite private institutions like Harvard and Columbia universities. George Mason is the second big public university to face scrutiny in recent weeks, following a Justice Department investigation at the University of Virginia that prompted the school’s president, James Ryan, to resign.

A statement from George Mason to the Associated Press denied any allegations of discrimination and said the university “affirms its commitment to comply with all federal and state mandates.”

The Trump administration has used civil rights law to fight DEI, saying diversity preferences amount to illegal discrimination against white and Asian American people. On his second day in office, Trump signed an action demanding an end to DEI at all universities that receive federal money.

George Mason responded to federal orders by renaming its DEI office in March, but it concluded that its policies were already in line with federal law.

The complaint to the Education Department also said the school did nothing to change campus hiring and promotion policies favoring minority groups, the department said. The complaint said George Mason had a policy to include an “equity adviser” in every academic department to help recruit faculty. The university also created an “anti-racism” task force whose work included “diversity cluster hire initiatives," according to the agency.

George Mason has built a reputation as a conservative powerhouse, especially in law and economics. But it has also been the subject of conservative criticism over its DEI initiatives. A 2023 report by the Heritage Foundation found that George Mason was “bloated” with high numbers of DEI officials and had “radical content” on its websites. Washington disputed the report and its methodology.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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