A scholarship created in honor of George Floyd at North Central University has quietly been replaced with a non-discriminatory version.
The original scholarship, which was exclusively for black students, was unlawful because it excluded non-black applicants, violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits racial discrimination in federally-funded institutions, an expert on the matter told Alpha News.
North Central president’s challenge sparked a national trend of black-only scholarships
The scholarship was first announced by North Central’s president during a June 2020 memorial service held at the university’s downtown Minneapolis campus.
At the time, then-president Scott Hagan introduced the “George Floyd Memorial Scholarship” (GFMS). The scholarship was only open to students who are “Black or African American, that is, a person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa,” according to the original description.
Hagan challenged other college presidents across the U.S. to follow his lead. Dozens of universities did just that, establishing similar GFMS programs, many of which were also limited to black students.
Complaints force colleges to comply with federal civil rights laws
Mark Perry, a former economics professor at the University of Michigan and an emeritus scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, filed a federal civil rights complaint against North Central in May 2021.
“It seems like there’s this unawareness or lack of concern in higher education. They must know that these are illegal because the law is very clear and simple … there was no way that they could legally defend a black-only scholarship,” Perry explained.
He emphasized that institutions accepting federal funds are obligated to comply with civil rights laws.
“The whole point of Title IX and Title VI is that if you accept federal funds from the Department of Education—which includes Pell grants for students, federally insured student loans for students, and research grants—you’re under a legal obligation as a recipient of federal funds to actively enforce all federal civil rights laws,” Perry said.
‘Floyd Scholarship’ replaces original as North Central complies with Title VI
Perry says he immediately reached out to North Central’s president and administrators when he realized the school was in breach of Title VI.
“North Central finally did the right thing, it just took three years of me pestering them and the Office for Civil Rights, and they finally did the right thing—but they should have done this years ago,” he said.
Following a lengthy investigation, the Office for Civil Rights issued its final determination on Sept. 18, 2024, confirming that North Central had removed the black-only restriction from its scholarship, which has now been replaced with the non-race-based “Floyd Scholarship.”
Challenging race-based scholarships
Perry explained that the process of filing complaints is straightforward.
“I’m not a lawyer, but I’ve been able to file almost 1,000 Title IX and Title VI complaints,” he said, noting that individuals can easily access the necessary information from university websites and send an email to the relevant regional Office for Civil Rights.
Perry’s initial complaint against North Central set the precedent for broader challenges nationwide.
“North Central was the first, and that inspired all these others. I challenged George Floyd scholarships all over the country and have prevailed in almost every case,” stated Perry, a Minnesota resident.
His efforts to eliminate sex- and race-restricted policies, programs, and scholarships have motivated others to file hundreds of complaints as well.
The impact of Perry’s campaign has even prompted the Office for Civil Rights to add two new categories to its database for tracking open and resolved complaints: “single-sex scholarships” and “single-sex campus programs.”
Alpha News reached out to North Central University for comment but did not receive a response.
Jenna Gloeb
Jenna Gloeb is an Edward R. Murrow Award-winning journalist, media producer, public speaker, and screenwriter. Most recently, she worked as a reporter and on-air host for CCX Media. Jenna is a Minnesota native and resides in the Twin Cities with her husband, son, daughter, and two dogs.
