The Trump administration has set its sights on several universities for giving scholarships to so-called “dreamers,” and has opened multiple investigations for potential discrimination.
“The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has opened national origin discrimination investigations into the University of Louisville, the University of Nebraska Omaha, the University of Miami, the University of Michigan, and Western Michigan University,” according to a news release from the Department of Education.
“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.”
DACA originated as an executive order from former President Barack Obama. It granted illegals who were brought to the U.S. as children, the opportunity to continually apply for a deferment regarding deportation.
President Donald Trump fought to end the measure in his first term, but lost in the Supreme Court, as NBC reported at the time.
The Biden administration sought to officially codify DACA in federal regulations but was challenged by Republican-led states that sought to have the program declared unconstitutional. In 2023, Politico reported, a federal judge found the effort to codify the program was illegal but declined to eliminate the program itself.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon posted about the scholarship issue on the social media platform X on Wednesday, writing: “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.”
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
The investigation is based on complaints that were submitted to the Education Department by the Legal Insurrection Foundation’s Equal Protection Project.
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According to the Education Department news release, William A. Jacobson, founder of the Equal Protection Project, commented on the probe saying: “Protecting equal access to education includes protecting the rights of American-born students. At the Equal Protection Project, we are gratified that the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights is acting on our complaints regarding scholarships that excluded American-born students.”
He added, “Discrimination against American-born students must not be tolerated.”
The news release cited examples of the targeted scholarships:
The University of Louisville’s “Sagar Patagundi Scholarship” meant to “subsidize the cost of higher education … for undergraduate DACA and undocumented students.”
The University of Nebraska Omaha’s “Dreamer’s Pathway Scholarship” is for “students who are DACA or DACA-eligible and Nebraska residents who are seeking an undergraduate degree.”
The University of Miami’s “Dreamers Program” is available to “academically talented and admissible [DACA] and undocumented high school seniors and transfer students.”
The University of Michigan offers another “Dreamer Scholarship,” that’s “intended to support undocumented students or students with DACA status.”
Western Michigan University has its “WMU Undocumented/DACA Scholarship” for undergrads, “who are ineligible to receive federal student aid due to an undocumented or DACA status.”
According to the news release, the Education Department’s Office of Civil Rights also plans to launch a full-scale investigation into other “allegedly impermissible and exclusionary scholarships,” which include: the 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.”
If you’ve come to the United States illegally, it is simply immoral to take up a spot at a school where American citizens or legal immigrants might have been considered. It’s an even bigger slap in the face to benefit from a scholarship, simply because you’ve violated the law.
Even if these individuals were brought to America by their parents, that doesn’t mean they should benefit from criminal activity.
The Supreme Court has already declared affirmative action dead — at least in the form of race-based admission to higher education. But far-left advocates are attempting to keep it alive at all costs, by putting their fingers on the scales.
This is the kind of backward thinking has dominated the Democratic Party for decades.
It must be met with an equal amount of force by the federal government if we ever hope to see a return to merit-based achievement.
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