UW-Madison update on Title VI complaint

UW–Madison condemns antisemitism in all its forms and strives to promote a welcoming campus environment for all members of the campus community, free from discrimination, including harassment based upon race, shared ancestry, national origin or other protected categories.

As referenced Tuesday by the Department of Education, the university was one of 60 universities with a pending Title VI complaint that received a letter. It continues to cooperate with any inquiries or requests for information from OCR.

More information about the Jan. 2024 complaint: https://news.wisc.edu/uw-madison-information-about-title-vi-investigation/

UW–Madison has a strong and deep commitment to supporting its Jewish Badgers, free expression and helping all students feel a sense of belonging. The university took a number of additional steps entering the 2024-25 academic year.

University leaders have:

• Reviewed, revised and consolidated its existing protest guidelines into an Expressive Activity Policy, providing additional clarity regarding the university’s rules and our reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions.  Infractions can lead to consequences through campus conduct processes or law enforcement.
• Prepared and issued campus-wide guidance on Political Activity and Public Advocacy on Campus, including in the classroom.
• Implemented a mandatory free expression training for all new students that includes discussion of offensive speech and training on Title VI discrimination, including shared ancestry discrimination, and made the training accessible to all students as well as faculty and staff.
• Centralized intake and review of bias reports for Title VI analysis (including shared ancestry) within the university’s Office of Compliance, which is the unit responsible for addressing civil rights laws and investigations.
• Revised the university’s registered student organization code of conduct and procedures for holding student organizations accountable.
• Created a new Policy on Institutional and Public Position Statements that clarifies the university’s plans to limit the number of public position statements that are made on behalf of the University of Wisconsin–Madison or any of its constituent units.

The university is continuing efforts to build a welcoming and inclusive community in the broadest sense, all of which aid the university’s continuing efforts to prevent and address antisemitism.

Senior leaders from UW–Madison continue to participate in Hillel’s Campus Climate Initiative (CCI). The initiative has led to additional training for staff in Student Affairs, DDEEA, Housing, and other units.

University policies and procedures work in tandem with the university’s other programs, policies, and efforts to bridge differences and build a welcoming community.