US Education Department orders civil rights probe into Harvard’s legacy admissions

(TNS) — The federal government has launched a civil rights probe into Harvard University’s use of legacy admissions, the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) said Tuesday, increasing pressure on universities already grappling with intense backlash to the practice.

The disclosure arrived three weeks after a Boston civil rights group filed a complaint with the Education Department over Harvard’s use of legacy admissions — the practice of advantaging the children of alumni in admissions decisions — and almost a month after the Supreme Court’s landmark decision banning affirmative action nationwide.

Legacy admissions, a controversial practice used by many elite universities, can disproportionately benefit white applicants. Civil rights advocates have seized on the fight against legacy admissions after the U.S. Supreme Court sharply curtailed colleges’ ability to give admissions bumps to Black and Latino students.