Public colleges could lose funding if they fail to support faith-based clubs -- including clubs that blatantly discriminate against LGBTQ students.
The Trump administration is moving forward with a policy that expands protections for religious groups on college campuses and threatens to cut federal education funding to colleges that violate free speech rules.
Public universities could also lose funding if they fail to provide religious student groups the same rights and benefits as other campus groups, including the use of campus facilities and access to student fee funding. That edict does not apply to private colleges, which have more flexibility in limiting speech on their campuses.Students pray during an Intervarsity Christian Fellowship meeting at Cal State Northridge in September 2014.
The policy was welcomed by a variety of religious groups that say colleges too often discriminate against students based on their faith. Some groups cited a 2018 case at the University of Iowa, which disbanded several religious groups that declined to adopt a policy forbidding discrimination based on, among other classifications, sexual orientation or preference.
Greg Jao, a spokesman for the evangelical Christian group InterVarsity Fellowship, said the rule is needed to protect student groups that want leaders who agree with their religious beliefs. “Universities should welcome all religious groups equally, in order to encourage tolerance, pluralism and religious diversity,” he said in a statement.InterVarsity Christian Fellowship members worship during a weekly meeting at California State University Long Beach in September 2014.
Many universities, however, see it as an unnecessary intrusion. They say the penalties are too severe and that it would be too easy to trigger a loss of funding. The American Council on Education, a group of college presidents, previously said the policy would lead to “a flood of frivolous lawsuits.”
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Analysis | McEnany’s defense of Trump misleading the public on the coronavirus: Trump doesn’t mislead the publicActually, he does. Quite a bit.
Read more »
Trump prepares a new fall offensive: Labeling Kamala HarrisDrawing on a playbook of caricature and condemnation, Trump’s campaign hopes to chip away at Joe Biden’s lead by presenting Harris as an extreme California liberal.
Read more »
Michael Cohen in new book writes Trump is 'a predator, a con man'Trump's former personal attorney described President Donald Trump as 'a cheat, a liar, a fraud, a bully, a racist, a predator, a con man.'
Read more »
Trump expands ban on new offshore drilling sites in AtlanticPresident Donald Trump sought to claim the mantle of environmental steward on Tuesday as he announced an expansion of a ban on offshore drilling and highlighted conservation projects in Florida. Trump spoke beside the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse, lambasting Democrat Joe Biden&39;s agenda at the taxpayer-funded
Read more »