Correction: An earlier version of this article included a reference to a government ruling involving Title IX and the University of California. The Department of Education’s findings involved the state of California.
The University of California system is being investigated by the Department of Justice over alleged race- and sex-based discrimination in employment.
The DOJ issued a news release Thursday regarding the “UC 2030 Capacity Plan,” which, according to the university, governs “enrollment projections, degree attainment, increasing diversity, supporting underserved regions, and meeting workforce demands,” as UC President Michael V. Drake wrote in an introductory letter to the document.
The government, though, contends that the plan directs UC’s 10 campuses to hire “diverse” faculty members to meet race- and sex-based quotas.
“These initiatives openly measure new hires by their race and sex, which potentially runs afoul of federal law,” according to the Justice Department.
The Civil Rights Division’s Employment Litigation Section will investigate to determine whether the university system is “engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination based on race, sex and other protected characteristics” under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
“Public employers are bound by federal laws that prohibit racial and other employment discrimination,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon said in the release. “Institutional directives that use race- and sex-based hiring practices expose employers to legal risk under federal law.”
According to the plan, released in 2022, one of Drake’s goals is to shape “campus populations that better reflect and tap the talent of underrepresented populations who represent the majority of Californians.”
The UC system did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The University of California has already has been targeted by the federal government. Three months ago, the DOJ launched an investigation into allegations of antisemitism on UC campuses, stemming from pro-Palestinian protests around the war in Gaza.