Equal Protection Project Challenges 100th School – DACA-Only Scholarship At U. Nebraska Omaha
In just over two years we have had a tremendous impact, regularly being recognized across the media (mainstream, conservative, liberal) as the leader in challenging discriminatory programs, scholarships, and practices in higher education.
The Equal Protection Project was launched in February 2023 to challenge DEI discrimination in education. In just over two years we have had a tremendous impact, regularly being recognized across the media (mainstream, conservative, liberal) as the leader in challenging discriminatory programs, scholarships, and practices in higher education. While higher ed has been our focus, we also have brought K-12 public school challenges as well as a major lawsuit challenging a NY State grant program affecting over 10,000 high school and middle school students a year.
Our media presence has been staggering. I’ve done over 300 distinct and over 900 total broadcast interviews (including reruns and broadcasts on multiple platforms). EPP’s work has over 2600 digital media mentions. Our earned media reaches tens of millions of people.
Yesterday was another milestone – we filed a legal challenge to the 100th school, the University of Nebraska Omaha (UNO), involving two schoarships, one for “minority” students and the other for DACA or DACA-eligible students. Across these 100 schools we have challenged over 400 separate programs and scholarships, with a verified impact or ‘win’ in over 70 of them (most are pending and not yet resolved). In cases that are concluded, we’ve never lost on the merits, but have had a handful dismissed on procedural grounds.
From the Civil Rights Complaint against UNO:
We bring this civil rights complaint against University of Nebraska Omaha (“UNO”), a public institution, for offering, administering, and promoting two (2) scholarships that discriminate based on race, color, and/or national origin.
UNO offers numerous scholarships to students each year.2 To apply, students must meet the eligibility requirements. Applicants must log in using their UNO credentials to access the application system. [image omitted]
The scholarships listed below are currently offered to UNO students and applicants for admission, according to the UNO website, and violate Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VI”) and its implementing regulations3 by discriminating against students based on their race, color, and/or national origin. Because UNO is a public university, these discriminatory scholarships also violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
Each of the scholarships listed below is available for the 2025-2026 school year.4
1. HDR Scholarship5
Link: https://unomaha.academicworks.com/opportunities/16485
Archived Link: https://archive.is/NZkbf
Description: “Preference shall be given to underrepresented minority students, but shall not be the controlling criterion in awarding this scholarship. [ 6 ]6 UNO considers a minority student to include “American Indian, African American, Asian American, Hispanics of Any Race, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islanders, and Two or More Races.” ….
2. Dreamer’s Pathway Scholarship Program
Link: https://unomaha.academicworks.com/opportunities/16025
Archived Link: https://archive.ph/lkI4l
Description: “The Dreamers Pathway Scholarship is for students who are Deferred Action of Childhood Arrivals (DACA) or DACA-eligible and Nebraska residents who are seeking an undergraduate degree at the University of Nebraska Omaha (UNO).” [ 7 ]7 Because DACA only applies to persons born outside the United States who meet certain additional criteria, restricting scholarship eligibility to DACA recipients constitutes discrimination based on national origin and violates Title VI….
As we do in all our complaints, we then exhaustive set forth the law, why the scholarships violate the Civil Rights Act and Constitution (for public institutions), and request that OCR open a formal investigation, the first big step in a case.
Fox News covered the case, Civil rights group claims DACA-only scholarships constitute illegal discrimination against American students [archive]:
A complaint filed by a civil rights organization on Wednesday alleges the University of Nebraska Omaha is offering scholarships that are discriminatory towards United States citizens.
“Providing a scholarship limited to DACA or DACA-eligible students is national origin discrimination,” Cornell professor William Jacobson and founder of the Equal Protection Project, told Fox News Digital in a statement.
“Because DACA only applies to persons born outside the United States who meet certain additional criteria, restricting scholarship eligibility to DACA recipients constitutes discrimination based on national origin and violates Title VI,” he added. “The national origin which is the subject of discrimination is American-born students.”
The Deferred Action of Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program was created by former President Barack Obama to provide temporary protection from deportation and work authorization to illegal immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as children….
“That race- and national-origin-based discriminatory scholarships exist at a major university is shocking and reflects how Critical Race Theory and its offshoots like Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, are deeply embedded in the campus culture,” Jacobson said. “It is time for higher education everywhere to focus on the inherent worth and dignity of every student rather than categorizing students based on identity groups.”
The group also alleges that UNO’s HDR scholarships violate Title VI as the school’s website says, “Preference shall be given to underrepresented minority students, but shall not be the controlling criterion in awarding this scholarship.”
“As UNO is a public university, its offering, promoting, and administrating these discriminatory scholarships also violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment,” the complaint reads. “In Students for Fair Admissions, the Supreme Court emphasized that ‘[e]liminating racial discrimination means eliminating all of it …. The guarantee of equal protection cannot mean one thing when applied to one individual and something else when applied to a person of another color. If both are not accorded the same protection, then it is not equal.’”
We will continue to push forward in 2025 and beyond, adding legal and research staff. While there has been a lot of progress in stamping out DEI discrimination, there is a lot more to be done.
Reminder: we are a small organization going up against powerful and wealthy government and private institutions devoted to DEI discrimination. Donations are greatly needed and appreciated.
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Comments
Good work! Thanks!
… why is a red state like Nebraska giving DACA handouts like this?
LI … Doing the work that RINOs refuse to do.
well Omaha and Lincoln aren’t as red as people think Omaha just elected a Dem Mayor this week, Lincoln has had dem leadership for awhile as well. In terms of the University its been going through dramatic changes for probably 2 decades.