A federal judge has halted the Trump administration's attempt to collect data on the race of university applicants, ruling that the demand was made in a 'rushed and chaotic' manner. The preliminary injunction, issued by US District Judge F Dennis Saylor IV in Boston, applies only to public universities in the 17 states that brought the lawsuit, led by Democratic attorneys general.
President Donald Trump ordered the data collection in August, arguing that universities might be using personal statements and other proxies to consider race in admissions, which he views as illegal. The 2023 Supreme Court ruling against affirmative action allowed colleges to consider how race has shaped students' lives only if voluntarily disclosed in essays. The administration's demand required the National Centre for Education Statistics to collect data on applicants' race and sex, retroactively for seven years, with an initial deadline of 18 March.
The plaintiff states argued that the data collection invades student privacy and could lead to baseless investigations. Their lawyer, Michelle Pascucci, told the court the effort was 'hasty and irresponsible' and aimed at uncovering unlawful practices. The Education Department defended the demand, saying taxpayers deserve transparency on federal funding. The judge acknowledged the government likely has authority to collect the data, but criticised the lack of meaningful engagement with institutions during the process.
The policy mirrors settlements with Brown and Columbia Universities, which agreed to provide race, GPA and test score data in exchange for restored federal research funding. Separately, the Trump administration has sued Harvard University over similar data requests, and the Education Department's civil rights office has given Harvard 20 days to comply or face referral to the Justice Department.
