Civil Rights in My School

The federal government is responsible for ensuring schools are free from discrimination, and this responsibility has been articulated and affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court, Congress, and the U.S. Department of Education. Every child deserves to feel safe and welcome at school.

 

Civil Rights in My School seeks to ensure the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has all of the resources it needs to ensure this mission is achievable. Your support is appreciated. Below are three ways you can help.

Discover what the data show about schools in your community, district or other districts.

You can find out about the enrollment demographics, information about school discipline including suspensions and expulsions, information about higher level courses like gifted programs and advanced science and math, and other information that gives an important picture of whether students in the school are being treated fairly.

Learn how to file a complaint of discrimination.

Here you can file a complaint of discrimination. Anyone can file a complaint of discrimination they experienced or witnessed – a student, parent or community member. Here OCR provides information about the complaint process and the link above takes you to a system for electronically submitting a complaint.

Let your Member of Congress know you support a robust Office for Civil Rights.

Tell your Member of Congress that you support a robust Office for Civil Rights, with the resources and commitment it needs to ensure every student can receive an education from early childhood through higher education free from discrimination. While the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is responsible for ensuring compliance with our civil rights laws, Congress has an important role to play in making sure that OCR can be successful.