(WFRV) – The United States Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced on Wednesday that it is opening a Title VI and disability-discrimination investigation into the Green Bay Area Public School District.
A release from the Department of Education’s OCR said the investigation is based on a complaint from the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty. The complaint alleges that the Green Bay Area Public School District discriminated against a student with dyslexia based on their race.
According to the release, the complaint specifically alleged that the District prioritizes its special education services to students based on racial priority groups. The complaint also said that the student in question did not fall into the group because he is white, the OCR release said.
The complaint continues, alleging that the District “discriminated against the student based on disability and failed to provide timely and adequate special education services.”
The statement below is from the Department of Education’s press release:
“In America, we do not ‘prioritize’ students for educational access, nor do we judge their worth, on the basis of skin color. Schools must provide special needs students access to supportive educational resources on an equal footing and on the basis of need, not on the basis of race. The Trump-McMahon Education Department rejects the false and patronizing idea that certain forms of discrimination are ‘benign.’ We will vigorously investigate this matter to ensure that the Green Bay Area Public School District is not discriminating against its students on the basis of race and disability.”
Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor
The statement below is from the press release, referring to the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty:
“We are grateful to Secretary McMahon and the Office for Civil Rights for opening this investigation into Green Bay Area Public School District. It is heartbreaking to think that, in America, a school would consider whether or not to provide services to a disabled student based not on that student’s need, but on the color his skin. This is not only unlawful – it is an affront to the character of the American people. We are proud to work alongside the Department of Education to hold schools accountable for their antidiscrimination obligations and to ensure that no student is denied their equal opportunity protections under the law.”
Cory Brewer, Education Counsel at Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty
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The full release can be viewed here. The official complaint is available here.
Local 5 will provide updates on this situation as needed.
