First on Fox California's top public university under fire for race

Cornell Law professor and founder of the Equal Protection Project, William A. Jacobson, has filed a federal civil rights complaint with the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights. The complaint accuses the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) of operating more than a dozen scholarships that exclude students based on race, gender, or national origin.

The 13 programs cited in the complaint include awards limited only to "Latinx" freshmen, "Pilippinx" students, "undocumented graduate students," and female applicants. The complaint claims that these criteria violate Title VI and Title IX of federal civil rights law, which prohibit discrimination by federally funded schools.

"It's shocking that a major and highly prestigious public university has scholarships that discriminate on the basis of race and gender," Jacobson told Fox News Digital. "UCLA should refrain from administering scholarships or programs that discriminate against students based on race, color, national origin, or gender."

The UCLA Latino Alumni Association Scholarship states that it is for "new Latinx students and transfer students," while the Filipino Alumni Association Award is for students "who demonstrate their membership in the Filipino community." The Undocumented Alumni Association Scholarship limits eligibility to undocumented students only, and the Raza Women Alumni Scholarship gives preference to "new Latina students and transfer students."

This language contradicts remarks by California Governor Gavin Newsom, who said earlier this year that "nobody says Latinx." Despite the governor's rejection of the term, UCLA, which is part of the UC system he oversees, still uses "Latinx" as an official eligibility label in taxpayer-funded scholarships.

Other programs cited include two scholarships for students of Armenian descent and a Deloitte Foundation award supporting "meritorious female students." The complaint argues that UCLA's use of racial or gender-based criteria "violates federal law and the university's own non-discrimination policies."

The document requests federal officials to investigate and, if necessary, suspend UCLA's federal funding until the programs are changed.

UCLA's scholarship portal contains a statement defending its process for "identity-conscious" awards.

The statement states, "UCLA administers all identity-conscious financial aid and scholarships in compliance with federal, state, and university regulations." "Identity-conscious awards may prioritize a student's race, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, color, ethnicity, or national origin... The joint application process allows students to be considered for multiple scholarships and is used to determine the recipient's source of aid, but not their eligibility, receipt, or amount of financial aid."

"Providing educational opportunities based on race, color, national origin, or sex violates Sections VI and IX of the Civil Rights Act," he said. "It's time for higher education to focus on the inherent worth of every student, not categorize them based on identity groups."