AAAED Spring 2016 PDTI and Title IX Institute (March 21-26, 2016)

Monday, March 21, 2016 8:00 AM - Saturday, March 26, 2016 5:00 PM (Eastern Time) Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia

Register for the March 2016 AAAED Professional Development and Training Institute/Title IX Institute: https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?EventID=1795043.

30% CAAP Discount Available for AAAED Members 10% CAAP Discount for Non-AAAED Members

Registrants may work towards the completion of the Certified Affirmative Action Professional (CAAP) credential by registering for the following courses:

March 21 - 22, 2016: Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action Law (16 hrs.)

March 23 - 24, 2016: Developing and Implementing an Affirmative Action Program (16 hrs.)

March 25 - 26, 2016: Complaint Processing, Counseling and Resolution (16 hrs.)

Registrants may work towards the completion of the Title IX certificate by registering for the Title IX Institute: https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?EventId=1814739.

March 24, 2016: Title IX Institute (8 hrs.)

All courses are Human Resources Certification Institute (HRCI) pre-approved.

EEOC To Give Employees Access to Employer Position Statements Upon Request

Squire Patton Boggs, Lexology

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently announced a change that will now provide discrimination claimants with their employers’ position statements.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• EEOC Will Now Allow Release of Position Statements to Charging Party (Locke Lord LLP)
• A One-Way Street: EEOC Unveils Nationwide Procedures for Releasing Employers’ Position Statements (Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky and Popeo PC)
• EEOC Will Now Offer to Share Employer Position Statements With Charging Parties During Investigations (Phelps Dunbar LLP)
• EEOC Implements Nationwide Program to Disclose Employer Position Statements and Supporting Documents (Epstein Becker Green)
• EEOC to Release Employer Position Statements to All Claimants (Baker & McKenzie)
• EEOC Providing Employer Position Statements To Charging Parties (Holland & Hart LLP)

EEOC Proposes Regulations Describing Federal Government’s Obligation to Engage in Affirmative Action for People with Disabilities

Commission Seeks Public Comment on Proposed Rule Implementing Section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) describing specific actions that federal agencies must take to comply with their obligation to engage in affirmative action in employment for individuals with disabilities. The NPRM is available in the Public Inspection portion of the Federal Register, and will be officially published February 24, 2016. Members of the public have 60 days from that date, April 25, 2016, to submit comments. EEOC has also published a question-and-answer document on the NPRM and a document providing background information and a summary of the NPRM.

Read the press release here.

Related content:

• EEOC Proposes Revised Affirmative Action Rules for Federal Agencies and their Obligations to Disabled Employees (Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP)
• ‘Game-Changer’: Federal Agencies to Increase People with Disabilities in Workforce (DiversityInc)

Three States Seek to Bolster Fair Pay Laws

Epstein Becker Green, Lexology

Following on the tails of recent updates in New York and California’s equal pay laws, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and California all have bills pending in their state legislatures that would seek to eliminate pay differentials on the basis of sex and other protected categories.

Read the story here.

Quality Solutions, LLC to Pay $22,500 to Settle EEOC Pregnancy Discrimination Suit

Company Violated Federal Law by Failing to Hire Pregnant Applicant, Federal Agency Charged

ATLANTA - Quality Solutions, LLC, a Dalton, Ga., staffing company, will pay $22,500 and furnish other relief to settle a pregnancy discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.

Read the press release here.

University Leaders Debate Police Involvement in Campus Sexual Assaults

By Jamaal Abdul-Alim, Diverse Issues in Higher Education

In order to combat sexual violence on campus, university leaders must broaden the conversation and take a more active role in shaping the policies that are being implemented to deal with the problem.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• The University Of Texas Has A Blueprint To Stop Campus Cops From Blaming Rape Victims (The Huffington Post)

Black Workers Really Do Need to Be Twice as Good

African American employees tend to receive more scrutiny from their bosses than their white colleagues, meaning that small mistakes are more likely to be caught, which over time leads to worse performance reviews and lower wages.

By Gillian B. White, The Atlantic

For decades, black parents have told their children that in order to succeed despite racial discrimination, they need to be “twice as good”: twice as smart, twice as dependable, twice as talented. This advice can be found in everything from literature to television shows, to day-to-day conversation. Now, a new paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research shows that when it comes to getting and keeping jobs, that notion might be more than just a platitude.

Read the story here.

Are US businesses doing enough to support religious diversity in the workplace?

Religious discrimination claims in the US have doubled since 2001. Should businesses take more steps to ensure every employee feels valued?

Late last year, US food processing company Cargill fired 150 Muslim workers from its beef processing plant in Colorado after a dispute over prayer breaks. After facing protests about the layoffs, the company changed its rehire policy earlier this month, allowing the fired employees to reapply for their jobs. The incident points to a growing challenge in the American workplace: what companies can do to accommodate their employees’ faiths.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• From Paris to San Bernardino: World Events Keep Focus on Religious Discrimination and Accommodations (Vedder Price PC)
• Religious Accommodation in the Healthcare Industry: What to Do When an Employee’s Beliefs Clash With Job Duties (Ogletree Deakins)

How Many Protests Will It Take to Finally Diversify Our Campuses?

By William B. Harvey, The Chronicle of Higher Education

It may appear to outside observers that colleges and universities have made tremendous progress in regard to racial attitudes and practices over the past several decades. Certainly, their brochures and other public-relations materials would lead to this conclusion, as do the messages on their websites and social-media platforms. But the intensity and frequency of demonstrations conducted by students of color at campuses across the nation during the last few months do not reconcile with the sense of racial harmony that the institutions have attempted to convey. Further, faculty and administrators of color have offered their own testimonies of marginalization and exclusion that echo the students’ expressions of dissatisfaction.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• How Racial Divisions at Colleges Start in a Segregated Society (EBONY)
• White Privilege Undermines Diversity in Higher Education (Diverse Issues in Higher Education)
• Concerned Student 1950 protesters march through University of Missouri campus (Columbia Daily Tribune)
• Students Demand More Minority Advisers and Counselors (Inside Higher Ed)
• New Big Ten Initiative Play, Baltimore, Confronts Race on Campus (Inside Higher Ed)
• Sustaining a Fight Against Racism (The Chronicle of Higher Education - requires paid subscription)

Education Dept. Defends Its Approach to Title IX in Face of Senate Pressure

By Peter Schmidt, The Chronicle of Higher Education

The Education Department is standing by its controversial guidance to colleges on sexual harassment and sexual assault in response to questions raised by a prominent Senate critic.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Colleges Are Frustrated Over Lack of Clarification on Title IX Guidance (Inside Higher Ed)
• Why a Congresswoman Is Pressing Colleges to Do More on Harassment (The Chronicle of Higher Education)
• Astronomer Geoff Marcy’s Downfall (The Chronicle of Higher Education - requires paid subscription)
• Lawmaker Calls Out a Professor — and Colleges — on Sexual Harassment (The Chronicle of Higher Education - requires paid subscription)
• Peyton Manning mentioned in Title IX lawsuit against University of Tennessee (CNN)

Education Secretary Nominee: Curbing Student Loan Debt, Campus Assaults Among Priorities

By Catherine Morris, Diverse Issues in Higher Education

Student loan debt and the campus sexual assault debate were two of the higher-education-related items on the agenda during the Senate education committee hearing on President Barack Obama’s nominee for secretary of education on Thursday afternoon.

Read the story here.

Looking Back but Moving Forward: OFCCP 2015 Year-End Review and 2016 Update

Haynes and Boone LLP, Lexology

2015 was an eventful year for government contractors as the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) finalized several key rules related to contractors’ relationships with employees and job applicants. With more rules expected to be finalized in 2016, the OFCCP will exercise increasing oversight over contractors’ activities. And since this is an election year, eyes will be on the presidential race and potential changes to the OFCCP’s agenda, depending on which candidate enters office in early 2017. This alert summarizes the key rules finalized in 2015, the ones we expect to see finalized in the final year of President Obama’s term, and the potential effects of a new administration on the regulatory agenda.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Wake Up Federal Contractors; Key Affirmative Action Issues for 2016 (Dykema Gossett PLLC)

Memphis Cheddar’s Settles EEOC Sexual Harassment Lawsuit for $450,000

Male Managers at Memphis Restaurant Sexually Harassed a Class of Female Employees, Federal Agency Charged

MEMPHIS - Mint Julep Restaurant Operations, LLC, an independent restaurant company and franchisee of the casual dining chain Cheddar's Casual Café, will pay $450,000 to 15 individuals and furnish other relief to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

Read the press release here.

Cessna Aircraft Company to Pay over $160,000 In EEOC Disability Discrimination Suit

Aircraft Manufacturer Required Conditional Employees With Physical Impairments to Satisfy Workers' Compensation Standards, Agency Charged

MILWAUKEE - Cessna Aircraft Company will pay $167,500 and furnish other relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.

Read the press release here.

Vail Condo Association Will Pay Over $1 Million to Settle EEOC National Origin Discrimination and Sexual Harassment Lawsuit

Management Company Ignored Complaints of Attempted Rape and Threats of Deportation, Then Fired Employees for Complaining, Federal Agency Charged

DENVER - Vail Run Community Resort Association, Inc., a condominium complex in Vail, Colo., and its management company, Global Hospitality Resorts, Inc., will pay $1,020,000 as part of the settlement of a sexual harassment, national origin discrimination and retaliation lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.

Read the press release here.

The EEOC Weighs in on HIV-Positive Workers

Wyatt Tarrant & Combs LLP, Lexology

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has long considered HIV infection to be a disability within the scope of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). From 1997 to 2014, the EEOC received in excess of 4,000 charges alleging ADA violations based on HIV status. In 2014, the EEOC resolved 197 charges and obtained over $800,000 for individuals who filed charges based on HIV status. The EEOC has also filed several lawsuits over the past few years against employers based on claims alleging failure to hire, discrimination and failure to accommodate individuals with HIV.

Read the story here.

Vacation Resorts International to Pay $125,000 to Settle EEOC Sexual Harassment / Retaliation Suit

Female Employee Fired for Reporting Egregious Sexual Harassment, Federal Agency Charged

MIAMI - Vacation Resorts International (VRI), a provider of management and marketing services to resorts, condominiums, and timeshares, will pay $125,000 and furnish other relief to settle a sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today. EEOC charged that VRI violated federal law when it permitted a manager at the Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort (which VRI manages) to sexually harass a groundskeeping/housekeeping employee and then unlawfully fired her when she resisted and reported the harassment.

Read the press release here.

Pharmacy Solutions Pays $85,000 to Settle Pregnancy Discrimination Suit with EEOC

Pharmacy's Owner Fired Two Pregnant Employees within Weeks of Each Other, Federal Agency Charged

DALLAS - Tomeldon Company, Inc., dba Pharmacy Solutions, an Arlington, Texas pharmaceutical compounding business, will pay $85,000 and furnish other relief to settle a pregnancy discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.

Read the press release here.

Chicago Police to Pay $3.1 Million to Settle Hiring Bias Claim Brought by Department of Justice Based on Applicant Background Check Requirements

SmithAmundsen LLC, Lexology

Unless you’ve been avoiding the national news the last several months, you already know the Chicago Police Department (CPD) has been in the cross hairs of the Department of Justice for alleged civil rights violations. Just this past Friday, February 5, 2016, the Department made a new civil rights claim against the CPD based on employment discrimination. The court complaint filed on Friday in the Northern District of Illinois, entitled United States v. City of Chicago, No. 1:16-cv-01969 (N.D.Ill. Feb. 5, 2016), alleges discrimination based on national origin. It claims the CPD discriminated againstapplicants not born in the United States through its residency requirement. Specifically, the Complaint alleged that a total of 47 applicants, who were otherwise qualified, were denied employment by CPD because they hadn’t lived in the United States for the required residency period. It claims that all 47 applicants were entitled to back pay, interest on lost wages and compensatory damages and requested that the city change its hiring policies removing the residency requirement as a “pass/fail” screening device.

Read the story here.

President Obama's 2017 Budget Seeks to Expand Educational Opportunity for All Students

U.S. Department of Education

The Obama Administration released a fiscal year 2017 budget today that makes crucial investments building on the Administration's work to advance educational equity and excellence, support teachers and school leaders, and promote college access, affordability and completion.

Read the press release here.

Click here for the Acting Secretary, John B. King Jr., of statement on the commemoration of Black History Month.

Related content from the U.S. Department of Education:

• Historic Investment: $17.4 Million in Grants Available to Help Native Youth
• U.S. Department of Education Takes Action to Deliver Equity for Students with Disabilities

Virginia parents are outraged after 'white guilt' affirmative action video is shown to high school students

By Alexandra Klausner, The Daily Mail

A Virginia community is reeling after students at a high school were made to watch a video about racial inequality during Black History Month.

Read the here.

Diverse Conversations: Have For-profit Schools Preyed on Minorities?

by Matthew Lynch, Diverse Issues in Higher Education

Turn on your television to any local station during daytime hours, and you’re sure to see a handful of commercials touting the amazing benefits of enrolling in for-profit colleges. These idyllic spots highlight flexible classes, accelerated programs, online classes available from the comfort of home, and more. Usually the information about the particular college is delivered by a once-uneducated person turned career success ― often a working dad, or single mom, whose kids are clearly proud of what the parent has accomplished. Obtaining a college education, particularly from the school mentioned, looks so easy to do.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• A crisis in student loans? How changes in the characteristics of borrowers and in the institutions they attended contributed to rising loan defaults (Brookings Institution)

California lawmaker introduces bill to end race-based wage discrimination

Bill that would ban companies from paying minority employees less than white workers for ‘substantially similar’ work is first of its kind in US

By Anita Chabria, The Guardian

A California lawmaker has introduced a bill to end wage discrimination based on race or ethnicity, building on a recent law that expanded rights for gender pay equity in the state.

Read the story here.

Education experts spar over affirmative action at University of Manitoba

Faculty of education to set aside 45% of spots for students from 'diversity categories'

CBC News

Rodney Clifton, professor emeritus of education at the University of Manitoba, is worried the faculty's new affirmative action plan will take away spots from students more qualified to be teachers.

Read the story here.

Diversity and Inclusion’s Slow Climb

Students Aren’t Letting Higher Education or Legislators Off the Hook

By Alexandra Vollman, INSIGHT Into Diversity

Over the last six months, the public has watched as college students across the country have voiced their grievances, via sit-ins and protests, over higher education’s inattentiveness to their needs and concerns, particularly those of minority students. On the sidelines, spectators have been quick to assign blame, criticize, and even side with students — with little knowledge of the true origins of their unrest.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• What Are Students Demanding? (American Council on Education)

Same-Sex Harassment Decisions Go Both Ways

Venable LLP, Lexology

A pair of recent federal appeals court decisions aptly illustrate the importance of an effective harassment policy that prohibits same-sex harassment and a prompt and meaningful response to allegations of such behavior. In Smith v. Rock-Ten Services, Inc., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit upheld a jury verdict that the employer failed to conduct a good faith investigation and to respond appropriately to complaints of same-sex harassment the jury found to be sufficiently pervasive and severe to support a harassment claim. In Burgess v. Dollar Tree Stores, Inc., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit found that an employee's claims of a supervisor's vague sexual advance and threat to rip a cross-bearing necklace from the employee's neck did not demonstrate the necessary pervasiveness or severity of conduct to support a harassment claim.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Sixth Circuit Affirms That Failure to Timely and Thoroughly Investigate Sexual Harassment Claims May Be Expensive (Squire Patton Boggs)

State Senator Stands Up for High Schoolers Racially Harassed at Texas A&M

By Sheryl Estrada, DiversityInc.

A group of approximately 60 Black and Latino high school juniors from Uplift Hampton Preparatory School in Dallas toured the Texas A&M University’s College Station campus last week. They were subjected to racial slurs from white college students, who also shouted “Go back where you came from.”

Read the story here.

Related content:

• One A&M student gone after racist confrontation with Dallas teens, but school won’t say more (The Dallas Morning News)
• U.S. Attorney’s Office To Investigate Civil Rights Complaints At Boston Latin School (The Guardian)
• What’s the Best Way to Lead After a Racial Incident on Campus? (The Chronicle of Higher Education - requires paid subscription)
• After Black High Schoolers Harassed, A&M Apologizes (Texas Tribune)
• Texas A&M apologizes after minorities told to ‘go back where you came from’(The Washington Post)
• A&M says it has identified some of the students involved in racial harassment of high schoolers; sends thousands of letters of apology (Dallas Morning News)
• Texas A&M Investigating After Black High Schoolers Harassed on Campus (Texas Tribune)
• Texas A&M investigates alleged racial abuse of black high schoolers on visit (The Guardian)

First-semester GPA a better predictor of college success than ACT score

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Underrepresented students' first-semester GPA may be a better predictor of whether they'll graduate college than their ACT score or their family's socioeconomic status, a new study found.

Read the story here.

Antonin Scalia’s Death Probably Won’t Affect ‘Fisher,’ but It Could Change the Future of Affirmative Action

By Eric Hoover and Eric Kelderman, The Chronicle of Higher Education

The death on Saturday of Antonin Scalia, the sharp-tongued justice who shaped constitutional debates for nearly 30 years, could end up shifting the Supreme Court’s ideological balance. But his absence is unlikely to affect the highly anticipated ruling in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, the pending legal challenge to race-conscious college-admissions policies. In short, the math still seems to favor the court’s conservative wing.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• How Scalia’s Death Affects the State of Affirmative Action (Harvard Political Review)
• What Antonin Scalia’s Death May Mean for the ‘Fisher’ Affirmative-Action Case (The Chronicle of Higher Education)
• Antonin Scalia, Justice on the Supreme Court, Dies at 79 (The New York Times)
• Scalia's Record on Higher Education and Pending Affirmative Action Case (Inside Higher Ed)
• What are the Short- and Long-Term Employment Law Implications of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia's Death? (Littler Mendelson PC)
• Law School Affiliates Remember Alum Scalia for Fiery Personality, Contributions to Law (Harvard Crimson)
• Justice Antonin Scalia: His Life and Career (The New York Times)
• Scalia’s Death Could Affect Affirmative Action Lawsuits (Harvard Crimson)
• Justice Scalia's Death Leads To Employer Uncertainty (Fisher & Phillips LLP)
• The Impact of Justice Scalia’s Passing on Pending Supreme Court Cases (Foley & Lardner LLP)
• A Closer Look at a Comment From Justice Scalia That Sparked Outrage (The Chronicle of Higher Education)
• Justice Scalia’s Death May Have Implications for Affirmative Action (INSIGHT Into Diversity)
• Every Vote Counts: The Scalia Legacy And The Future Of Employment Class Actions Before The Supreme Court (Seyfarth Shaw LLP)
• Where Scalia's Vote Was Decisive (The American Prospect)
• Tameka Porter: The mismatch myth (The Hill)

EEOC Releases Fiscal Year 2015 Enforcement and Litigation Data

Retaliation, Race Discrimination and Harassment Persist; Disability Charges Increase

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today released detailed breakdowns of the 89,385 charges of workplace discrimination that the agency received in fiscal year 2015. Retaliation charges increased by nearly 5 percent and continue to be the leading concern raised by workers across the country. Disability charges increased by 6 percent from last year and are the third largest category of charges filed.

Read the press release here.

Related content:

• Fisher & Phillips' Wrigley: EEOC's 2015 Fiscal Year Data Prompts Top 10 Tips (Fisher & Phillips LLP)
• Retaliation Continues to Be the Number One Type of Charge Filed with the EEOC (Hall Render Killian Heath & Lyman PC)
• Retaliation and Disability Charges are on the Rise, According to EEOC Litigation and Charge Statistics for FY 2015 (Littler Mendelson PC)

Chipotle liable for discriminating against female workers

By Fatima Hussein, Cincinnati Enquirer

A federal jury in Cincinnati Monday determined Chipotle Mexican Grill wrongfully terminated three former general managers on the basis of their genders and violated the federal Family and Medical Leave Act.

Their suit alleged they were wrongly terminated by a former manager who treated male general managers better than the three females, despite the women receiving similar or better performance evaluations or “audits.” What it also claimed was that the company violated the family leave act.

Read the story here.

Yesterday’s Pub & Grille Sued by EEOC For Disability Discrimination

Supervisor Refused to Hire HIV-Positive Employee for Server Position

GREENSBORO, N.C. - Sappyann, Inc., which operates Yesterday's Pub & Grille restaurant in Sanford, N.C., violated federal law by discriminating against an employee when it refused to hire him because he is HIV-positive, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

Read the press release here.

Don’t Cry Over Spilled Milk: Best Practices for Handling Nursing Employees

DLA Piper LLP, Lexology

“First comes love, then comes marriage [or not – no judgment], then comes the baby in the baby carriage” and then – for nursing working mothers – comes expressing milk at the workplace. Nursing employees are currently afforded workplace protections under several major federal laws; plus, many state and local governments have expanded these federal protections, extending additional rights to nursing workers.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• The Definition of Sex (Graydon Head & Ritchey LLP)

National Federation for the Blind Will Pay $25,000 to Settle EEOC Religious Accommodation Lawsuit

Advocacy Group Fired Employee Who Requested Off on His Sabbath, Federal Agency Charged

BALTIMORE - The National Federation of the Blind (NFB), the largest organization of blind and low-vision people in the United States, will pay $25,000 and furnish significant equitable relief to settle a federal religious discrimination lawsuit, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced today.

Read the press release here.

Randstad Will Pay $50,000 to Settle EEOC Disability Discrimination Lawsuit

Temporary Agency Refused Job to Laborer Because She Was in a Medically Supervised Drug Rehabilitation Program, Federal Agency Charged

BALTIMORE - Baltimore-based temporary labor agency Randstad, US, LP, will pay $50,000 and furnish significant equitable relief to settle a federal disability discrimination lawsuit, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced today.

Read the press release here.

$31 Million NH Jury Verdict: Former Walmart pharmacist rings the bell in discrimination case

Pierce Atwood LLP, Lexology

Jury in US District Court, District of NH concludes disgruntled former employee was the victim of sex discrimination and retaliation, awarding back pay, front pay, compensatory, and punitive damages.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Walmart Discrimination Case Makes Headline (Kelley Drye & Warren LLP)

Wellesley College appoints first African-American president

By Allison Pohle, Boston Globe

Wellesley College named Dr. Paula Johnson as its new president Thursday, making her the college’s first African-American leader.

Johnson is currently a professor at Harvard Medical School and is chief of Women’s Health at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. She’ll replace Kim Bottomly, who announced last April that she would step down after nine years as president of the private, women’s, liberal-arts university.

Read the story here.

Click here to read the official Wellesley College news release.

Related content:

• Harvard faculty member named Wellesley’s 1st black president (WTOP)
• Wellesley College Names Paula Johnson as President (Diverse Issues in Higher Education)
• Wellesley College Names Its First Black President (The Chronicle of Higher Education)

Department of Justice Sues Ferguson, Which Reversed Course on Agreement

By Matt Apuzzo, The New York Times

WASHINGTON — The Department of Justice filed a civil rights lawsuit against Ferguson, Mo., on Wednesday, less than a day after the city rejected an agreement to overhaul its beleaguered criminal justice system and address allegations of widespread abuses by its police department.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Feds Sue City of Ferguson for Civil Rights Violations (DiversityInc)

Brown University Announces Plan to Improve Faculty, Graduate Student Diversity

By Macy Salama, INSIGHT Into Diversity

Brown University introduced a plan on Monday aimed at doubling the number of faculty and graduate students who have been historically underrepresented by 2022 in hopes of improving on-campus diversity.

Related content:

• New Study Suggests Women Presidents Influence Colleges and Universities to Hire More Humanities Professors (Inside Higher Ed)
• University of Michigan Launches Program to Promote Inclusion On and Off Campus (INSIGHT Into Diversity)
• University of Maryland, Baltimore County: A university confronts bias in faculty hiring (Marketplace)
• Reconsidering the Pipeline Problem: Increasing Faculty Diversity (American Council on Education)
• Harvard Medical Students Decry Lack of Diversity (STATNews)
• New roster of ABA officer nominees sends a message about the importance of diversity and inclusion (ABA Journal)
• Can I Mentor African-American Faculty? (Inside Higher Ed)

Student Debt Makes College More Expensive for Women

College loans haunt women for years longer than men, a new study shows.

By Natalie Kitroeff, Bloomberg

Student debt haunts women for years longer than it stays with men, research suggests. A report from the American Association of University Women shows that women take longer to pay off their education loans, which imposes a heavier burden on their finances years after they graduate. Black and Hispanic women in particular earn much less than other groups over time, and end up struggling the most to get rid of the debt that financed their college educations.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Why Even Wealthy Black Students Have More Student Loan Debt (BuzzFeed)
• New study: Disparity in student loan debt between blacks and whites (Dartmouth College)

Academia's 'Baby Penalty'

Fathers and childless women in academia are three times more likely to secure tenure-track positions than are working mothers.

By Sandra Waxman and Simone Ispa-Landa, U.S. News and World Report

Last month, Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter introduced a suite of new Pentagon policies aimed at retaining female troops, especially those with young families. This follows on the heels of a bold new report issued at the World Economic Forum's annual meeting where 10 major Fortune-500 companies, including Twitter, Barclays and PricewaterhouseCoopers, committed to achieving full gender parity by 2020.

Our nation's universities should join in. Women comprise only 37.5 percent of tenured faculty and 22 percent of university presidents.

Read the story here.

Academic Alleges Discriminatory Hiring Practices

Inside Higher Ed

Are many academic job ads discriminatory to people with disabilities? That’s what David Perry, a professor of history at Dominican University, alleges in a new op-ed in Al Jazeera called “Disabled People Need Not Apply.” Perry argues that academe, despite its focus on inclusion, is a regular offender when it comes to job ads that exclude large groups of people. “I found around 60 current advertisements, including faculty, staff and administrative positions, at diverse types of universities,” Perry wrote of the analysis on which his piece was based. “At many institutions, every job posting receives one of these clauses, despite many positions being perfectly suited to individuals with all types of bodies, senses and minds.”

Read the story here.

Why We Need More Women in Higher Ed IT

Changing mindsets is only the first step to ensuring IT teams improve diversity among their ranks.

By Deborah Keyek-Franssen and Beth Schaefer, Ed Tech Magazine

Striving for diversity in IT stems from the imperative that we deliver the best services and solutions to our students, faculty and staff.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• 5 Ways to Get Girls to Fall in Love With STEM (Inc.com)

Renewed Criticism of Baylor on Sex Assaults

Inside Higher Ed

Baylor University is facing new criticism -- much of it from its own students and alumni -- over a statement by President Ken Starr expressing concern for victims of sexual violence, The Dallas Morning News reported. Many noted that the president released the statement on Super Bowl Sunday, a time when many wouldn't notice. Many say Baylor continues to avoid tough issues related to sexual assault, especially when allegations involve a star athlete. Many are speaking out using the Twitter hashtag #baylorscandal. Others held a vigil on campus Monday night (see photo at right).

Read the story here.

Related content:

• A Closer Look at 7 Common Requirements in Resolved Federal Sex-Assault Inquiries (The Chronicle of Higher Education - requires paid subscription)

Report: Few Black College Students Major in High-Paying Fields

Colleges should work harder to emphasize the earning power of certain degrees over others, new research suggests.

By Sarah Grant, Bloomberg

Research shows that the good jobs (secure, high-paying, non-manual labor) are going to people with a Bachelor's degree. It's clear that the job market values college graduates. But some degrees pay off in career success more than others, and that's hurting black college-educated Americans, research shows.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Are Black College Students Getting the Right Advice? (The Atlantic)
• Black Students Choosing Low-paying Majors (Diverse Issues in Higher Education)
• Get Ready for More Protests (Inside Higher Ed)
• Survey Forecasts More Heat for College Campuses (Diverse Issues in Higher Education)

Save-A-Lot Franchise Pays $125,000 to Settle EEOC Sexual Harassment Suit

Company Ignored Escalating Sexual Harassment and Sexual Assault of Female Cashier, Federal Agency Charged

GREENVILLE, Miss. - The Canton, Miss., franchise of Save-A-Lot Grocery operated by Potter and Sims Foods, Inc., a Kosciusko, Miss.-based grocery company, will pay a former employee $125,000 to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit brought by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.

Read the press release here.

EEOC Seeks Input on Proposed Pay Data Collection Requirements and Retaliation Enforcement Guidance

Littler Mendolson, Lexology

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is soliciting public comments on two proposed policy changes that could have a significant impact on employers. The agency plans to require companies with 100 or more employees to include pay data as part of their Employer Information Report (EEO-1) form submissions, and issue enforcement guidance on unlawful retaliation.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• EEOC’s Proposed Guidance Broadens Scope of Unlawful Retaliation (Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing & Myers LLP)
• EEOC Proposes Updated Guidance to Address Increasing Number of Retaliation Claims (Wyatt Tarrant & Combs LLP)
• EEOC Retaliation Guidance, Part 3: A “causal connection” checklist for employers (Constangy Brooks Smith & Prophete LLP)
• EEOC Seeks to Expand Retaliation Claims in Proposed Enforcement Guidance - Public Input Sought (Hunton & Williams LLP)
• EEOC’s Proposed (Anti) Retaliation Guidance: Is Your Whistleblower Response System Ready? (Littler Mendelson PC)
• EEOC Releases New Guidance on Retaliation (Manatt Phelps & Phillips LLP)
• Employers Are Put On Notice: EEOC Issues Proposed Retaliation Guidance (Akerman LLP)
• EEOC Ratchets Up Focus On Retaliation: EEOC Publishes First New Enforcement Guidance on Retaliation In Nearly Two Decades (Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP)
• EEOC Retaliation Guidance, Part 1: You gotta be “protected”! (Constangy Brooks Smith & Prophete LLP)
• EEOC guidance on retaliation: make it easier for employees to prove their case (Reed Smith LLP)

Missouri State University students demand removal of diversity official

By Claudette Riley, Springfield News-Leader

For the second time in three months, a group of Missouri State University students is demanding changes that involve top diversity officials.

This time, they seek the immediate dismissal of Juan Meraz, assistant vice president of multicultural services. He is MSU's highest-ranking Hispanic official.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Disciplined by Missouri State University, diversity official Juan Meraz apologizes (Springfield News-Leader)
• MSU students say if Juan Meraz isn't fired, they have right to protest, seek legal action (Springfield News-Leader)

Rental Pro to Pay $37,000 to Settle EEOC Age Discrimination Lawsuit

Equipment Rental Company Owner Sought 'Younger and Peppier' Employees, Federal Agency Charged

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Rental Pro, a miscellaneous equipment rental company located in Somerset, Ky., with locations in Hazard, London and Pikeville, Ky., will pay $37,000 to settle an age discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.

Read the press release here.

Five Tips If You’re Planning To Fire A Pregnant Employee, Especially One With A Disability

FisherBroyles, Lexology

The EEOC has long declared in its Strategic Enforcement Plan (“SEP”) that issues “involving the intersection between the ADA and pregnancy-related limitations is one of [its] six national priorities.”

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Another Case Of Exploited Female Workers (FisherBroyles)
• Top Ten Tips - No Eleven - To Avoid Employment Discrimination Claims (FisherBroyles)

Busineses Owned By Women Less Likely to Win U.S. Contracts, Study Says

By Jackie Calmes, The New York Times

WASHINGTON — The odds of businesses owned by women winning a federal contract are about 21 percent lower than for otherwise similar companies, and years of effort to increase those chances have barely made an impact, according to a new report from the Commerce Department.

Read the story here.

Why Did the University of California Fire a Tenured Professor?

The University of California has fired just a handful of tenured professors since the late 1950s -- including one late last month. Details are still hazy, but those involved in the controversial case against a well-known professor of English at the Riverside campus are breaking their silence.

By By Colleen Flaherty, Inside Higher Ed

In an extremely rare move, the University of California System Board of Regents last month fired a tenured faculty member -- over alleged violations of the university's sexual harassment and drug and alcohol use policies. While the exact details of the professor’s transgressions are confidential for now, the case has spilled over into the public sphere. Rob Latham, former professor of English at the system’s Riverside campus, says shared governance and his academic freedom have been violated and that he intends to sue, while some of his former colleagues are defending the university’s decision.

Read the story here.

Chicago Professor Resigns Amid Sexual Misconduct Investigation

By Amy Harmon, New York Times

A prominent molecular biologist at the University of Chicago has resigned after a university recommendation that he be fired for violating the school’s sexual misconduct policy. His resignation comes amid calls for universities to be more transparent about sexual harassment in their science departments, where women account for only one-quarter of senior faculty jobs.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• When a Faculty Candidate Has Been Investigated for Harassment, What’s a Hiring Committee to Do? (The Chronicle of Higher Education - requires paid subscription)

Federal Government Remains Focused on Title IX Compliance

By Olabisi Okubadejo, Ballard Spahr LLP

The National Science Foundation (NSF) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) recently made announcements that signal the government’s continued focus on ensuring that colleges and universities comply with Title IX's prohibition against sex discrimination, including sexual harassment and sexual assault.

Read the press release here.

Related content:

• Education Dept. Defends Its Approach to Title IX in Face of Senate Pressure (The Chronicle of Higher Education)
• Campuses may be ill-equipped to handle sexual assault, but it's the law (Education Dive)

Nation’s prominent public universities are shifting to out-of-state students

By Nick Anderson and Danielle Douglas-Gabriel, The Washington Post

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — America’s most prominent public universities were founded to serve the people of their states, but they are enrolling record numbers of students from elsewhere to maximize tuition revenue as state support for higher education withers.

Read the story here.

Eleventh Circuit Resurrects Transgender Mechanic’s Title VII Gender Discrimination Claim

SmithAmundsen LLC, Lexology

Recently the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals (covering Georgia, Florida and Alabama) reversed a District Court decision which dismissed a Title VII gender discrimination claim brought by an auto mechanic who is transgender, Chavez v. Credit Nation Auto Sales, LLC (11th Cir. Jan. 14, 2016). In reinstating the plaintiff’s claim, the Eleventh Circuit reaffirmed its earlier pronouncement that discrimination based on gender nonconformity is unlawful sex discrimination.

Read the story here.

Can computers be racist? Big data, inequality, and discrimination

Michael Brennan, Ford Foundation

It seems like everyone is talking about the power of big data and how it is helping companies, governments, and organizations make better and more efficient decisions. But rarely do they mention that big data can actually perpetuate and exacerbate existing systems of racism, discrimination, and inequality.

Read the story here.

Confronting Racial Divide, Missouri’s Interim President Finds Anger, Finger-Pointing

Nearly three months after the University of Missouri’s top two officials resigned amid student protests, Michael Middleton leads an institution still wrestling with its path forward.

By Jack Stripling, The Chronicle of Higher Education

The University of Missouri remains deeply divided over racial issues that came to the fore three months ago, and the system’s new leader says that his efforts to move forward are complicated by anger and distrust that persist across the state.

Michael A. Middleton, a veteran civil-rights lawyer and retired deputy chancellor at Missouri’s Columbia campus, the flagship, was tapped in November to serve as the system’s interim president after Missouri’s two top officials resigned amid student protests.

Read the story here (requires paid subscription).

Related content in The Chronicle of Higher Education:

• MU interim president urges community to move forward, stop pointing fingers (St. Louis Today)
• After Racist Episodes, Blunt Discussions on Campus (The New York Times)
• University of Missouri System Announces Diversity Spending (Diverse Issues in Higher Education)
• What Black Campus Activists Can Learn From the Freedom Summer of 1964
• Students' Demands Go Beyond Black and White (requires paid subscription)
• Evangelical Colleges’ Diversity Problem (requires paid subscription)
• What an Elite French Institute Can Teach American Colleges About Diversity (requires paid subscription)

Sexual Assault Allegation Shakes Conduct Group

President-elect of organization of officials who play key roles in Title IX cases accuses her predecessor of sexual misconduct.

By Josh Logue, Inside Higher Ed

The president-elect of the Association for Student Conduct Administration published an open letter on Twitter Wednesday evening, the first night of the organization’s annual conference, in which she says she was sexually assaulted by its former president-elect and that the ASCA “has not had my back” in the incident’s aftermath.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Indiana Title IX Administrator, Accused of Sexual Assault, Resigns (The Chronicle of Higher Education)
• An Administrator’s Rape Allegation Shakes Student-Conduct Group (The Chronicle of Higher Education)

New Book Discusses Self Stratification among Black Academics

By Colleen Flaherty, Inside Higher Ed

Social science suggests that stigmatized groups compete for social standing. And a new book that’s part qualitative study, part autobiography, suggests that that trend is evident in higher education among black academics.

Read the story here.

Students with Disabilities More Likely to Drop out of High School

By Frank Kineavy, DiversityInc

Students with disabilities are lagging behind their able-bodied peers when it comes to high school graduation. As the U.S. is on track to reach 90 percent graduation rates by 2020, students with disabilities only graduate at a rate of 61.9 percent, according to the 2015 Building a Grad Nation Report released by the America’s Promise Alliance.

This outlook is grim, especially considering that students with disabilities account for approximately 13 percent of all public school students nationwide. But since the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) 25 years ago, some steps have been taken in an attempt to increase graduation rates.

Read the story here.

N.F.L. Will Require Women to Be Interviewed for Executive Positions

By Ken Belson, The New York Times

SAN FRANCISCO — In an effort to diversify leadership in the upper ranks of the N.F.L., Commissioner Roger Goodell said Thursday that the league would now require that at least one woman be interviewed for any executive position openings in the league office.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• An Ex-Prosecutor Is Unafraid to Flag the Players (The New York Times)

EEOC Announces Proposed Addition of Pay Data to Annual EEO-1 Reports

Pay Ranges and Hours Worked to Be Included, Making It Easier to Spot Trends and Pay Discrimination

WASHINGTON --The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today made public a proposed revision to the Employer Information Report (EEO-1) to include collecting pay data from employers, including federal contractors, with more than 100 employees. This new data will assist the agency in identifying possible pay discrimination and assist employers in promoting equal pay in their workplaces. The revised EEO-1 will be announced today in conjunction with the White House commemoration of the seventh anniversary of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Remarks of EEOC Chair Jenny R. Yang at the White House Equal Pay Event, January 29, 2016
• Agency Information Collection Activities: Revision of the Employer Information Report (EEO-1) and Comment Request (Federal Register)
• Pay Data Reporting Proposal Published in Federal Register (Jackson Lewis PC)
• Employers May Soon Be Forced To Reveal Pay Information By Gender (Fisher & Phillips LLP)
• IS YOUR PAY EQUITY UP TO SNUFF? EEOC plans to start collecting pay data, and using it (Constangy Brooks Smith & Prophete LLP)
• Future EEO-1s may include employee pay data (Greensfelder Hemker & Gale PC)
• EEOC Proposes Major Change to EEO-1 Reporting: The Addition of Wage and Hours Worked Information (Phelps Dunbar LLP)
• The EEOC Proposes to Require Pay Data on EEO-1s (Venable LLP)
• Executive Action Will Require Companies to Disclose Gender Pay Data (INSIGHT Into Diversity)
• EEOC Proposes Requiring Employers to Report Pay and Hours Worked Information on EEO-1 Forms (Ford & Harrison LLP )
• Reducing the Risks of Pay Discrimination Claims: Employer Pay Equity Audits (Ogletree Deakins)
• EEOC Announces Proposed Changes to EEO-1 Report Requiring Large Employers to Report Pay Data (Ogletree Deakins)
• EEOC Proposes Compensation Report to Accompany EEO-1 Report (Quarles & Brady LLP)
• EEOC proposes to target pay discrimination by collecting employers' salary and hours worked data (Stinson Leonard Street LLP)
• EEOC Proposes Significant Expansion of EEO-1 Reporting Requirements (Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP)
• EEOC Proposes Burdensome Annual Collection of Pay Data on EEO-1 Forms (McGuireWoods LLP)
• Proposed EEO-1 Revisions Requiring Production Of Pay Data Published In Federal Register (Proskauer Rose LLP)

Obama Moves to Expand Rules Aimed at Closing Gender Pay Gap

By Julie Hirschfeld Davis, The New York Times

WASHINGTON — President Obama on Friday moved to require companies to report to the federal government what they pay employees by race, gender and ethnicity, part of his push to crack down on firms that pay women less for doing the same work as men.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Let’s Talk About Pay: New Requirements for Federal Contractors (Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP)
• White House wants companies to submit pay data to close gender gap (USA Today)
• Obama to propose new rule to examine gender pay inequity (The Washington Post)

NHC Healthcare/Clinton, LLC will Pay $50,000 to Settle EEOC Pregnancy and Disability Discrimination Lawsuit

Nursing Center Failed to Provide Pregnant Employee with a Reasonable Accommodation and Subsequently Fired Her, Federal Agency Charged

GREENVILLE, S.C. - NHC Healthcare/Clinton, LLC, a licensed nursing center that provides a wide array of skilled nursing, therapeutic and rehabilitative services, has agreed to pay $50,000 and provide substantial injunctive relief to settle a pregnancy and disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.

Read the press release here.

Dehaven’s Transfer & Storage to Pay $35,000 to Settle EEOC Pregnancy Discrimination Lawsuit

Moving Company Fired Expectant Employee Based on Unfounded Belief That Job Was Unsafe for Her, Federal Agency Charged

DURHAM, N.C. - DeHaven's Transfer & Storage, Inc., a residential and commercial moving company, has agreed to pay $35,000 and provide significant relief to settle a pregnancy discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today. EEOC had charged in its lawsuit that DeHaven's violated federal law by discrimin­ating against a female employee when it fired her because she was pregnant.

Read the press release here.

P.H. Glatfelter to Pay $180,000 to Settle EEOC Disability Discrimination Lawsuit

Paper Manufacturer Screened Out Individuals With Disabilities Based on Unlawful Qualification Standard, Federal Agency Said

PHILADELPHIA - P.H. Glatfelter Company, a global paper manufacturer headquartered in York, Pa., will pay $180,000 and provide significant equitable relief to settle a federal disability discrimination lawsuit, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced today.

Read the story here.

GAO Publishes Report on Gender Diversity of Corporate Boards

Morrison & Foerster LLP, Lexology

On December 3, 2015, the United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) published its report analyzing the history of gender diversity of U.S. corporate boards and provided recommendations for improving female board representation. The report indicates that, following current trends, it could take 10 years for women to comprise 30% of board positions and more than 40 years for representation of women to be equal to men. In 2014, when the data was collected for the report, women comprised approximately half of the U.S. workforce, but only held approximately 16% of board seats of S&P 1500 companies, which represented an 8% increase from 1997. The report identifies three key factors that help to explain why female representation on boards has only grown incrementally in recent years. First, rather than prioritizing diversity, boards tend to rely on personal networks to identify potential new candidates for election. Second, boards often choose candidates from a “traditional pipeline,” which includes former members of boards or those with CEO experience. To increase female candidacies for board positions, the report suggests that boards expand searches beyond the traditional pipeline, and perhaps set voluntary targets for diversity. Third, the report cites the relatively small number of vacant board seats that are open each year (only approximately 4% of board positions are filled by new directors each year).

Read the story here.

Progress slow for gender, pay equality in global workforce: report

By Patricia Reaney, Reuters

Women around the globe are seeing slow progress in gaining gender and pay equality and are under-represented at all levels in the workplace and executive boardrooms, a report shows.

Read the story here.

Univ. of Texas Chancellor Prefers Terminating Top 10 Percent Rule

By Matthew Watkins, Texas Tribune

University of Texas System Chancellor Bill McRaven argued in two separate public appearances this week that the state should consider scrapping its top 10 percent automatic admissions rule, saying it hurts the prestige of his flagship university.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Affirmative action should replace top 10 percent rule, not the opposite (The Daily Texan)

Civil Rights Leader, Politician Georgia Davis Powers Dies

Associated Press

Georgia Davis Powers, a giant in the fight for civil rights in Kentucky and the first African-American woman elected to the state Senate, has died. She was 92.

Read the story here.

David Cameron Says Lack of Diversity at Top Shames Britain

Associated Press

British Prime Minister David Cameron says he will make universities disclose what proportion of poor and ethnic minority applicants they admit, in an attempt to end racial and class discrimination that "should shame our country and jolt us to action."

Read the story here.

Related story:

• British Prime Minister Criticizes Oxford for Low Enrollment of Disadvantaged Students (The Chronicle of Higher Education)
• University of Oxford rebuts Cameron's claims over student diversity (The Guardian)

The surprising relationship between intelligence and racism

A new study designed to examine the relationship between verbal intelligence and attitudes on race and racial policies offers some surprising results.

By Husna Haq, The Christian Science Monitor

Are smart people less racist than their less-intelligent peers?

That was the question asked in a new study that examined the relationship between verbal intelligence and attitudes on race and racial policies.

Read the story here.

Do White College Students Believe Stereotypes About Minorities?

Researchers found that they bought into the trope that Asian Americans are more competent, and blacks and Latinos need to “work harder.”

Asian American students are “cold but competent.” Latinos and blacks “need to work harder to move up.”

At least, that’s how their white peers at the country’s elite colleges and universities see them, according to a new study by Baylor University researchers. The study uses data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Freshmen, a survey of 898 participants from 27 prestigious American universities in which respondents rated their opinions of Asian, black, and Latino Americans based on work ethic, intelligence, and perseverance.

Read the story here.

Florida State to Pay $950,000 to Settle Title IX Suit by Quarterback’s Accuser

The Chronicle of Higher Education

Florida State University will pay $950,000 to settle a federal Title IX lawsuit filed by a former student who said she had been raped by a star quarterback for the Seminoles, USA Today reports. The university also agreed to make a five-year commitment to prevention and training programs.

Read the story here.

Non-white Scots 'face work prejudice'

BBC

People from ethnic minority backgrounds in Scotland are still being held back by workplace discrimination, according to a report by a committee of MSPs.

Read the story here.

‘Gifted’ Black Kids Not as Likely to Get Placed in Talented Programs

By Lydia Lum, Diverse Issues in Higher Education

High-achieving, Black, elementary school students are much less likely than their White peers to receive assignments to gifted and talented programs in math and reading, according to a new study.

However, the disparities in rates of placement essentially disappear among Black students who have Black teachers.

Read the story here.