BOSTON — A federal judge has blocked efforts by the Trump administration to collect data proving that higher education institutions do not consider race in admissions.
The ruling by U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV in Boston on Friday granted the preliminary injunction lawsuit It was introduced last month by a coalition of 17 Democratic state attorneys general. It will apply only to plaintiffs’ public universities.
The federal judge said the federal government likely had the authority to collect the data, but the request was put forward to universities in a “hasty and chaotic” manner.
“The President’s 120-day deadline directly led to the failure of the National Center for Education Statistics to meaningfully engage with institutions during the notice and comment process to address many of the issues posed by the new requirements,” Saylor wrote.
President Donald Trump ordered the data collection in August after he raised concerns that colleges and universities were using personal data and other proxies to look at race, which he considers illegal discrimination.
In 2023, the Supreme Court ruled against the use Affirmative action in acceptance But she said colleges can still consider how race shapes students’ lives if applicants share that information in their admissions essays.
The states say the data collection threatens to violate students’ privacy and lead to baseless investigations into colleges and universities. They also argued that universities were not given enough time to collect data.
“The data search was done in a hasty and irresponsible manner, which will create problems for the universities,” Michelle Pascucci, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, told the court, adding that the efforts appeared aimed at uncovering illegal practices.
The Department of Education has defended the effort, saying taxpayers deserve transparency about how money is spent at institutions that receive federal funding.
The administration’s policy reverberates Settlement agreements The government negotiated with Brown University and Columbia Universityand get their federal research funds back. Universities agreed to provide government data on race, grade point averages, and standardized test scores for applicants, admitted students, and enrolled students. The schools also agreed to be audited by the government and to publish admissions statistics to the public.
The National Center for Education Statistics will collect new data, including race and gender for college applicants, admitted students and enrolled students. Education Minister Linda McMahon said the data, which was originally scheduled to be provided by March 18, should be disaggregated by race and gender and reported retrospectively over the past seven years.
If colleges fail to submit complete and accurate data in a timely manner, the department said McMahon could take action under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, which sets requirements for colleges receiving federal student financial aid.
The Trump administration did so separately He filed a lawsuit against Harvard University Because of similar statements, she said she refused to provide admissions records, and demanded that the Justice Department ensure the school stops using affirmative action. Harvard said the university is responding to government requests and adhering to the Supreme Court’s ruling against affirmative action. On Monday, the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights directed Harvard to comply with data requests within 20 days of referring the face to the U.S. Department of Justice.