Department of Education Deals Blow to Efforts By Woke Universities When It Comes to Non-Citizens

Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon announced an investigation into several universities that have been accused of giving scholarships to non-citizens.

In a statement posted on X on Wednesday, President Donald Trump’s Education Secretary wrote that “Non-citizens should not be given special preference over American citizens for scholarships at American universities."

“@usedgov opened an investigation into five universities for allegedly blocking U.S. students from accessing DACA scholarships,” she added.

Non-citizens should not be given special preference over American citizens for scholarships at American universities.@usedgov opened an investigation into 5 universities for allegedly blocking U.S. students from accessing DACA scholarships.https://t.co/eDU1VrdIVH
— Secretary Linda McMahon (@EDSecMcMahon) July 23, 2025

ALSO: Education Secretary McMahon: Columbia University Violated Federal Civil Rights Law During Protests

The press release about the investigation named each of the universities that have allegedly given scholarships that benefit illegal alien students instead of American ones. The investigations are based on complaints submitted to the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) by the Legal Insurrection Foundation’s Equal Protection Project, it added.

The investigations will determine whether these universities are granting scholarships only for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) or “undocumented” students, in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI) prohibition against national origin discrimination.

The schools listed are the University of Louisville, the University of Nebraska Omaha, the University of Miami, the University of Michigan, and Western Michigan University.

The complaints against the schools include the following:

University of Louisville’s Sagar Patagundi Scholarship to “subsidize the cost of higher education...for undergraduate DACA and undocumented students.”
University of Nebraska Omaha’s Dreamers Pathway Scholarship for “students who are DACA or DACA-eligible and Nebraska residents who are seeking an undergraduate degree.”
University of Miami’s U Dreamers Program, which “is available to academically talented and admissible [DACA] and undocumented high school seniors and transfer students.”
University of Michigan’s Dreamer Scholarship, which “is intended to support undocumented students or students with DACA status,” and
Western Michigan University’s WMU Undocumented/DACA Scholarship is for undergraduate students who are ineligible to receive federal student aid due to an undocumented or DACA status.”

It also noted that the investigation will look into “additional scholarships that appear to exclude students based on other aspects of Title VI, including race and color.”

SEE: First 100 Days: Trump Admin Sends Thousands of International Criminal Students Packing

The additional complaints include:

University of Louisville’s Dawn Wilson Scholarship for “undergraduate LGBTQ+ students of color” and the Louisville Tango Festival Scholarship for “Latino/a/x and Hispanic students.”
University of Nebraska Omaha’s HDR Scholarship, which gives “preference...to underrepresented minority students,” and
Western Michigan University’s Elissa Gatlin Endowed Scholarship for “African American, Native American, or Hispanic American” students.

“On January 21, 2025, President Trump promised that ‘every single day of the Trump Administration, [he] will, very simply, put America first.’ Neither the Trump Administration’s America first policies nor the Civil Right Act of 1964’s prohibition on national origin discrimination permit universities to deny our fellow citizens the opportunity to compete for scholarships because they were born in the United States,” Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor said in the release.

“As we mark President Trump’s historic six months back in the White House, we are expanding our enforcement efforts to protect American students and lawful residents from invidious national origin discrimination of the kind alleged here," Trainor added.

The investigations follow other moves by the Trump administration to force woke universities to adhere to the president's agenda to put Americans and America’s interests ahead of the rest of the world.

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