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Introduction
The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) enforces five federal civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability and age in programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance from the Department of Education (ED). Discrimination on the bases of race, color and national origin is prohibited by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; sex discrimination is prohibited by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; discrimination on the basis of disability is prohibited by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (Title II prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability by public entities, whether or not they receive federal financial assistance); and age discrimination is prohibited by the Age Discrimination Act of 1975.
These civil rights laws extend to all state education agencies, elementary and secondary school systems, colleges and universities, vocational schools, proprietary schools, state vocational rehabilitation agencies, libraries and museums that receive federal financial assistance from ED. Programs or activities that receive ED funds must provide aids, benefits or services in a nondiscriminatory manner. Such aids, benefits or services may include, but are not limited to, admissions, recruitment, financial aid, academic programs, student treatment and services, counseling and guidance, discipline, classroom assignment, grading, vocational education, recreation, physical education, athletics, housing and employment.
OCR also enforces the Boy Scouts of America Equal Access Act, part of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Under the Boy Scouts of America Equal Access Act, no public elementary school, public secondary school, or state or local education agency that receives funds made available from the Department of Education and that provides an opportunity for one or more outside youth or community groups to meet on school premises or in school facilities before or after school hours shall deny equal access or a fair opportunity to meet to or discriminate against, any group officially affiliated with the Boy Scouts of America or any other youth group listed in Title 36 of the United States Code as a patriotic society.
Who Can File a Discrimination Complaint
Anyone who believes that an education institution that receives federal financial assistance has discriminated against someone on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability or age, or who believes that a public elementary or secondary school, or state or local education agency has violated the Boy Scouts of America Equal Access Act, may file a complaint. The person or organization filing the complaint need not be a victim of the alleged discrimination but may complain on behalf of another person or group.
Timeliness
A complaint must be filed within 180 calendar days of the date of the alleged discrimination, unless the time for filing is extended by OCR for good cause.
Institutional Grievance Procedures
Prior to filing a complaint with OCR against an institution, a potential complainant may want to find out about the institution’s grievance process and use that process to have the complaint resolved. However, a complainant is not required by law to use the institutional grievance process before filing a complaint with OCR. If a complainant uses an institutional grievance process and also chooses to file the complaint with OCR, the complaint must be filed with OCR within 60 days after the last act of the institutional grievance process.
How to File an Online Complaint
Complainants wishing to file a complaint may do so by:
Mail or Facsimile: Complainants may mail or send by facsimile a letter or use the OCR’s Discrimination Complaint Form available from one of OCR’s enforcement offices (see the list of OCR’s offices in this brochure). In your correspondence, please include:
- The complainant’s name, address and, if possible (although not required), a telephone number where the complainant may be reached during business hours;
- Information about the person(s) or class of persons injured by the alleged discriminatory act(s) (names of the injured person(s) are not required);
- The name and location of the institution that committed the alleged discriminatory act(s); and
- A description of the alleged discriminatory act(s) in sufficient detail to enable OCR to understand what occurred, when it occurred, and the basis for the alleged discrimination (race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age or the Boy Scouts of America Equal Access Act).
E-mail: Complainants may file a complaint, using the following e-mail address: ocr@ed.gov. (Use the same procedures as above.)
Online: Complainants may file a complaint with OCR using OCR’s electronic complaint form at the following Web site: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/complaintintro.html.
For those without current e-mail accounts, Internet access may be freely available from your local public library, and free e-mail accounts are available from several large providers.
Note: A recipient of federal financial assistance may not retaliate against any person who has made a complaint, testified, assisted or participated in any manner in an investigation or proceeding under the laws listed on the first page of this brochure.
Where to Write (see Note) |
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Headquarters Office for Civil Rights Enforcement Offices |
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Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, |
Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, North Dakota Office for Civil Rights/Chicago U.S. Department of Education Citigroup Center 500 W. Madison Street Suite 1475 Chicago, IL 60661 Tel.: (312) 730-1560 Fax: (312) 730-1576 TDD: 312-730-1609 or 1-877-521-2172 |
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New Jersey, New York, |
Michigan, Ohio Office for Civil Rights Cleveland U.S. Department of Education 600 Superior Avenue East Suite 750 Cleveland, OH 44114 Tel.: (216) 522-4970 Fax: (216) 522-2573 |
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Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, West Virginia Office for Civil Rights Philadelphia U.S. Department of Education The Wanamaker Building 100 Penn Square East Suite 515 Philadelphia, PA 19107 Tel.: (215) 656-8541 Fax: (215) 656-8605 |
Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota, Oklahoma Office for Civil Rights Kansas City U.S. Department of Education 8930 Ward Parkway Suite 2037 Kansas City, MO 64114 Tel.: (816) 268-0550 Fax: (816) 823-1404 |
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Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee Office for Civil Rights/Atlanta U.S. Department of Education 61 Forsyth Street, S.W. Suite 19T70 Atlanta, GA 30303 Tel.: (404) 562-6350 Fax: (404) 562-6455 |
Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming Office for Civil Rights/Denver U.S. Department of Education 1244 Speer Boulevard Cesar E. Chavez Memorial Building Suite 310 Denver, CO 80204 Tel.: (303) 844-5695 Fax: (303) 844-4303 |
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Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas Office for Civil Rights/Dallas U.S. Department of Education 1999 Bryan Street, Suite 1620 Dallas, TX 75201 Tel.: (214) 661-9600 Fax: (214) 661-9587 |
California Office for Civil Rights/San Francisco U.S. Department of Education 50 Beale Street, Suite 7200 San Francisco, CA 94105 Tel.: (415) 486-5555 Fax: (415) 486-5570 |
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North Carolina, Virginia, Washington, D.C., South Carolina Office for Civil Rights/DC U.S. Department of Education 1100 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Rm. 316 P.O. Box 14620 Washington, D.C. 20044 Tel.: (202) 786-0500 Fax: (202) 208-7797 |
Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Montana, Washington, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands Office for Civil Rights/Seattle U.S. Department of Education 915 Second Avenue Room 3310 Seattle, WA 98174 Tel.: (206) 220-7900 Fax: (206) 220-7887 |
Note: The above addresses were correct when this pamphlet was printed. Any subsequent changes are available from the OCR "Contact Us" page.
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