Office of Civil Rights

The mission of the Office for Civil Rights,the U.S. Department of Education, is to ensure equal access to education and to promote educational excellence throughout the nation through vigorous enforcement of civil rights.

We serve student populations facing discrimination and the advocates and institutions promoting systemic solutions to civil rights problems. An important responsibility is resolving complaints of discrimination. Agency-initiated cases, typically called compliance reviews, permit OCR to target resources on compliance problems that appear particularly acute. OCR also provides technical assistance to help institutions achieve voluntary compliance with the civil rights laws that OCR enforces. An important part of OCR's technical assistance are partnerships designed to develop creative approaches to preventing and addressing discrimination.

The U.S. Department of Education is the agency of the federal government that establishes policy for, administers, and coordinates most federal assistance to education.

How to File a Discrimination Complaint with the Office for Civil Rights

Office for Civil Rights

U.S. Department of Education

400 Maryland Avenue, S.W.

Washington, D.C. 20202-1100

(202) 245-6800; 1-800-421-3481

FAX: (202) 245-6840; TDD: (877) 521-2172

E-mail: OCR@ed.gov

Web: http://www.ed.gov/ocr

The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) enforces several federal civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination 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 enforced by OCR 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.

In addition, as of January 8, 2002, OCR 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 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 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.

WHAT TO DO

Anyone wishing to file a formal complaint with OCR should submit in writing the following information in a letter or on the Discrimination Complaint Form available from OCR enforcement offices (see listing):

Your name and address (a telephone number where you may be reached during business hours is helpful, but not required);

A general description of 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).

HOW TO FILE AN ONLINE COMPLAINT

OCR encourages students and parents, representatives of education institutions, and other OCR customers to use e-mail or fax to communicate with OCR, whenever possible. Also, complainants may file a complaint with OCR, online, at the following website: http://www.ed.gov/ocr/complaintprocess.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.

A recipient 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 above.

WHO CAN FILE

Anyone who believes that an educational 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. A complainant is not required by law to use the institutional grievance procedure 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.

WHERE TO WRITE (see Note)

EASTERN DIVISION

Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts,

New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont

Office for Civil Rights, Boston Office

U.S. Department of Education

33 Arch Street, Suite 900

Boston, MA 02110-1491

(617) 289-0111; FAX# (617) 289-0150

New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico,

Virgin Islands

Office for Civil Rights, New York Office

U.S. Department of Education

32 Old Slip, 26th Floor

New York, NY 10005-2500

(646) 428-3900; FAX# (646) 428-3843

Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky,

Pennsylvania, West Virginia

Office for Civil Rights, Philadelphia Office

U.S. Department of Education

Wanamaker Building

100 Penn Square East, Suite 515

Philadelphia, PA 19107-3323

(215) 656-8541; FAX# (215) 656-8605

SOUTHERN DIVISION

Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee

Office for Civil Rights, Atlanta Office

U.S. Department of Education

61 Forsyth Street, S.W., Suite 19T70

Atlanta, GA 30303-3104

(404) 562-6350; FAX# (404) 562-6455

Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas

Office for Civil Rights, Dallas Office

U.S. Department of Education

1999 Bryan Street, Suite 1620

Dallas, TX 75201-6810

(214) 661-9600; FAX# (214) 661-9587

North Carolina, Virginia, Washington, D.C.,

South Carolina

Office for Civil Rights, DC Office

U.S. Department of Education

P.O. Box 14620

Washington, D.C. 20044-4620

(202) 786-0500; FAX# (202) 208-7797

MIDWESTERN DIVISION

Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Wisconsin,

Iowa, North Dakota

Office for Civil Rights, Chicago Office

U.S. Department of Education

Citigroup Center

500 W. Madison Street, Suite 1475

Chicago, IL 60661

(312) 730-1560; FAX# (312) 730-1576

Michigan, Ohio

Office for Civil Rights, Cleveland Office

U.S. Department of Education

600 Superior Avenue East, Suite 750

Cleveland, OH 44114-2611

(216) 522-4970; FAX# (216) 522-2573

Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota,

Oklahoma

Office for Civil Rights, Kansas City Office

U.S. Department of Education

8930 Ward Parkway

Suite 2037

Kansas City, MO 64114-3302

(816) 268-0550; FAX# (816) 823-1404

WESTERN DIVISION

Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico,

Utah, Wyoming

Office for Civil Rights, Denver Office

U.S. Department of Education

Cesar E. Chavez Memorial Building, Suite 310

1244 Speer Boulevard

Denver, CO 80204-3582

(303) 844-5695; FAX# (303) 844-4303

California

Office for Civil Rights, San Francisco Office

U.S. Department of Education

50 Beale Street, Suite 7200

San Francisco, CA 94105

(415) 486-5555; FAX# (415) 486-5570

Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon,

Montana, Washington, American Samoa,

Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands

Office for Civil Rights, Seattle Office

U.S. Department of Education

915 Second Avenue, Room 3310

Seattle, WA 98174-1099

(206) 220-7900; FAX# (206) 220-7887