Eight Discriminatory Scholarships at University of Toledo Challenged By Equal Protection Project

Eight Discriminatory Scholarships at University of Toledo Challenged By Equal Protection Project

The Equal Protection Project (EqualProtect.org) is a project of the Legal Insurrection Foundation devoted to fighting unlawful discrimination in all forms.  While most of our cases have involved race, color, and national origin discrimination, we will challenge all forms of unlawful discrimination, including sex discrimination.

Since its launch, EPP has challenged over 550 discriminatory programs and scholarships at more than 120 colleges and universities. This is done to ensure that every student has the opportunity to compete on equal terms.

Our most recent filing on September 16, 2025, was a Civil Rights Complaint against University of Toledo (“UToledo”):

We bring this civil rights complaint against the University of Toledo (“UToledo”), a public university, for discrimination in eight (8) scholarships and programs, seven of which are based on sex, in violation of Title IX, and one of which is based on race, color, or national origin, in violation of Title VI.

UToledo offers a variety of scholarships to students. In most cases, applicants are automatically considered for these awards based on the information provided in their admissions application. That means eligibility factors such as sex, race, or ethnicity embedded in scholarship descriptions are applied directly from the applicant’s own submitted information, without requiring a separate application process.

We then go on to list the scholarships at issue and why we believe they violate the Civil Rights Act:

The scholarships listed below are currently offered to UToledo students and applicants for admission, according to the UToledo website, and violate Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (“Title IX”) and its implementing regulations by discriminating against students based on their sex, while others violate Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VI”) and its implementing regulations by illegally discriminating against students based on their race, color or national origin. Because UToledo is a public university, these discriminatory scholarships also violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution:

Scholarships that Violate Title IX (7)

1. Dr. Mary Louise Glen Scholarship
Link: https://utoledo.scholarships.ngwebsolutions.com/Scholarships/Search
Archived Link: https://archive.is/wip/DmCod
Discriminatory Requirement: “Scholarship awarded to sophomore, junior, or senior level females majoring in Women’s and Gender Studies (WGST). Preference is given to non-traditional students (age 25 and older). A minimum GPA of 3.2 is required.”

2. Irene Ambers Hill Scholarship
Link: https://utoledo.scholarships.ngwebsolutions.com/Scholarships/Search
Archived Link: https://archive.is/wip/DmCod
Discriminatory Requirement: “Scholarship awarded to female students graduating in the top half of their Toledo high school class, who are enrolled in the Judith Herb College of Education, preparing for a teaching degree.”

3. Georgina Miranda Bentley Scholarship
Link: https://utoledo.scholarships.ngwebsolutions.com/Scholarships/Search
Archived Link: https://archive.is/wip/DmCod
Discriminatory Requirement: “Scholarship awarded to women pursuing a degree at UToledo while raising children.”

4. Toledo Women’s Bar Association Scholarship
Link: https://utoledo.scholarships.ngwebsolutions.com/Scholarships/Search
Archived Link: https://archive.is/wip/DmCod
Discriminatory Requirement: “Scholarship awarded to students in the College of Law with preference given to female students.”

5. Luetke Eberly Center Education Access Fund
Link: https://utoledo.scholarships.ngwebsolutions.com/Scholarships/Search
Archived Link: https://archive.is/wip/DmCod
Discriminatory Requirement: “Preference is given to nontraditional female students.”

6. Marcella Roll Memorial Scholarship
Link: https://utoledo.scholarships.ngwebsolutions.com/Scholarships/Search
Archived Link: https://archive.is/wip/DmCod
Discriminatory Requirement: “Scholarship awarded to full-time female students in their third, fourth, or fifth year in the professional division of a College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences program.”

7. Patricia Hanf Memorial Scholarship
Link: https://utoledo.scholarships.ngwebsolutions.com/Scholarships/Search
Archived Link: https://archive.is/wip/DmCod
Discriminatory Requirement: “Scholarship awarded to full-time female students majoring in accounting.”

Scholarships that Violate Title VI (1)

1. Dr. Daniel Neusom Memorial Scholarship for Minority Students
Link: https://utoledo.scholarships.ngwebsolutions.com/Scholarships/Search
Archived Link: https://archive.is/wip/DmCod
Discriminatory Requirement: “Scholarship for Minority Students.”

As we always do, we then spend several pages explaining why a racially exclusionary scholarship violated not only federal and state law, but also the university’s own non-discrimination rules. We then request that a formal investigation be opened.

The complaint was covered by WTVG which reported:

A conservative legal group has made a civil rights complaint against the University of Toledo over scholarships available only to women or minorities.

The Equal Protection Project filed the complaint with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights on September 16.

In the complaint, they direct the office to seven scholarships available on UToledo’s website that specify women as candidates for the award, and one that specifies minorities…

A spokesperson for UToledo said Wednesday that the university hasn’t received any communication from the Education Department regarding a complaint from the Equal Protection Project. “That said, we are committed to providing our students access to a high value education,“ the statement read. ”UToledo has been working to review and amend our scholarship agreements in a way that complies with new and rapidly developing legal frameworks while remaining committed to fostering a campus community that is supportive of all students.”

WTOL also covered the complaint:

A conservative nonprofit has filed a federal complaint against the University of Toledo, alleging that several of the school’s scholarships unlawfully discriminate based on race and gender.

The group, called the Equal Protection Project, submitted a Title IX complaint to the U.S. Department of Education this week. EPP’s president, William Jacobson, said at least eight scholarships, including the Patricia Hanf Memorial Scholarship, awarded to full-time female accounting students, restrict eligibility in ways that violate federal law.

“What we’re seeking is to have the eligibility requirements of these scholarships brought into compliance with the law so every student has an equal shot without regard for race, color, national origin, or sex,” Jacobson said.

On campus, not everyone agrees with the effort. UToledo freshmen Eran Canary and Hannah Hammitt told WTOL 11 that women, minorities and LGBTQ+ students often need additional support…

Jacobson dismissed that argument.

“We don’t accept that the way you address past discrimination is discriminating now,” he said.

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.

Robert Fox is an attorney at the Equal Protection Project, and focuses, among things, on filing civil rights complainst against DEI discrimination.

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