Hamline University Discriminatory Scholarships Challenged By Equal Protection Project

Hamline University Discriminatory Scholarships Challenged By Equal Protection Project

Our Equal Protection Project has challenged over 275 colleges and universities covering over 750 discriminatory programs and scholarships. Our Year-End 2025 Impact Report has the statistics and the recognition of our impact, even by mainstream media.

Our most recent filing was on April 7, 2026, against Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota..

From the Civil Rights Complaint:

We bring this civil rights complaint against Hamline University (“Hamline”), a private college, for discrimination regarding its Creative Writing Scholarship that is awarded based upon the race of the recipient. Additionally, we request an investigation of other race-based scholarships offered through the Hamline Center for Excellence in Urban Teaching. Scholarships that are awarded based upon the race, color, or national origin of the recipient violate Title VI.

Hamline University emphasizes diversity, equity, and inclusion as part of its institutional mission and student experience. As the university explains, “Hamline University recognizes that students’ diverse identities impact their educational experience. To ensure a welcoming environment for everyone, Hamline provides a variety of resources to support all students, including those who identify as BIPOC, LGBTQIA, dis- and differently abled, and more.”2 This mission is reflected in the scholarships it offers, which impose discriminatory eligibility criteria.

SCHOLARSHIP THAT VIOLATES TITLE VI (1) 3

The scholarship listed below4 is currently active according to the Hamline website, and violates Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VI”) and its implementing regulations5 by excluding students based on their race, color, or national origin:

1. Creative Writing Merit Scholarships
Link: https://www.hamline.edu/academics/graduate/creative-writing-mfa/scholarships
Archived Link: https://archive.ph/wip/tNuxp
Discriminatory Requirement: “The scholarship is awarded to 10% of incoming students, and one scholarship is offered to a student who identifies as a writer of color.”

ADDITIONAL DISCRIMINATORY SCHOLARSHIPS APPEAR TO EXIST AT HAMLINE – INVESTIGATION REQUESTED

There is reason to believe that additional discriminatory scholarships and programs exist at Hamline beyond those identified here.6 For example, the Hamline Center for Excellence in Urban Teaching states that it has available “scholarships and mentoring … for aspiring teachers who are people of color or indigenous or American Indian.”7

Although publicly available information is limited and not readily available on Hamline’s public-facing website, this statement strongly suggests that Hamline administers further race-based programs that are not readily accessible for review. Because Hamline strongly suggests it has additional discriminatory scholarships and programs but keeps that information off its public webpages, OCR should use its subpoena and other investigatory abilities to uncover this potentially unlawful conduct.

Fox9 in Minneapolis covered the story:

The discriminatory merit scholarship mentioned above now has been removed from Hamline’s web page, but our archived link shows how it existed right before we filed (“one scholarship is offered to a student who identifies as a writer of color”).

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.

=====================

Donations tax deductible
to the full extent allowed by law.