The federal government has opened a civil rights investigation into Florida State University over 32 scholarships that a legal watchdog group says discriminate against students based on race or sex, a case that exposes how deeply race-based preferences remain embedded even in a state that has moved aggressively against them.
The Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights notified FSU in an Aug. 4 letter that it would formally investigate whether the university violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and Title IX through scholarship programs that steer awards toward students of particular races or genders. The letter, obtained by Fox News Digital, lists all 32 programs by name and confirms that FSU receives federal financial assistance, the legal trigger that subjects the school to both statutes.
The investigation follows a 34-page complaint filed in July 2025 by the Equal Protection Project, a legal organization founded by Cornell Law professor William Jacobson. EPP's complaint divides the 32 scholarships into three categories: 14 that allegedly discriminate based on race, color, or national origin; 13 based on sex; and five based on both.
Jacobson told Fox News Digital that FSU stands out even among the more than 290 colleges and universities his organization has challenged.
"Florida State, surprisingly, has one of the largest contingencies of discriminatory scholarships that we've seen anywhere. We have challenged over 290 colleges and universities, and only a handful have this many."
That finding carries extra weight given Florida's political environment. Gov. Ron DeSantis and the state legislature have pushed harder than almost any other state government to strip diversity, equity, and inclusion programs out of public higher education. Jacobson pointed to the disconnect directly.
"Florida famously has cracked down on wokeness and DEI and discrimination more so than blue states. So it's very surprising to find such aggressive discriminatory scholarships at Florida State University."
His blunt assessment of the gap between Tallahassee's political posture and what is actually happening on one of its flagship campuses cuts to the heart of the complaint. The state moved to ban race-based preferences. FSU, a school enrolling more than 46,000 students, apparently kept handing them out under a different label.
The university pushed back on the allegations. FSU said in a statement that all students are eligible to apply for and receive every scholarship on the list.
"While donors may express preferences, these do not constitute eligibility requirements."
FSU maintained that all applicants are evaluated equally based on merit, with no student disqualified or given an unfair advantage because of a donor preference. The university also noted that the scholarships are funded entirely through private donations.
But the complaint paints a different picture at the listing level. One scholarship, the Crockett Family Fund for Excellence, stated on FSU's own academic works platform that any student could apply, then specified the donor's preference that the recipient be an African American or Black student. Another, the Crossman Career Builders Scholarship, listed a donor preference for a female recipient who is Black or African American, Hispanic, or a member of the Seminole Tribe. A third, the Dynamic African American Women in Engineering Powerhouse Scholarship, expressed a preference for an African American female student. A fourth, the College of Arts and Sciences Student Travel Awards, stated a preference for a female recipient.
Jacobson was unsparing about FSU's defense.
"They try to couch this in terms of offloading the blame onto the donor. These are scholarships promoted by and awarded through the Florida State University system. Legally, they are responsible."
He accused the university of trying to wordsmith its way around the problem rather than fix it.
"Rather than doing away with it, they play word games. And that's just not good enough."
The Office for Civil Rights made clear in its Aug. 4 letter that opening the investigation "in no way implies" it has reached a determination on the merits. The agency said it will serve as a neutral factfinder and collect and analyze evidence from FSU, the complainant, and other sources.
Jacobson acknowledged the preliminary nature of the probe but emphasized that reaching this stage is not routine.
"It is very significant that the U.S. Department of Education has opened this for a formal investigation. That doesn't happen in every case. This is a preliminary step, but it's a very large preliminary step."
EPP also called on Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier and DeSantis' administration to examine the programs independently. Neither office responded immediately to Fox News Digital's request for comment. The Department of Education also did not respond immediately.
Jacobson drew a clear line between the funding and the discrimination, making a point that undercuts the typical progressive objection that challenges to race-based programs amount to taking money away from minority students.
"We do not want the scholarships disbanded or shut down. We want the discrimination disbanded and shut down. Keep the funding, give the students the money, but give everybody a fair shot."
He also posed a question aimed squarely at state officials who have built political brands on fighting exactly this kind of institutional behavior.
"We hope the Attorney General and the Governor's Office will look into this. Why is one of the leading state schools in Florida so openly and pervasively discriminating in its scholarship programs?"
It is a fair question. Florida passed the laws. Florida's elected leaders took the political heat for passing them. And one of Florida's own flagship universities appears to have found a way to keep doing what those laws were written to stop, just with softer language on the application page.
If a "donor preference" for a specific race walks like an eligibility requirement and awards like an eligibility requirement, the label on the box does not change what is inside it. The federal government is now looking inside the box. Tallahassee should be, too.
