NYU will hire its first Title VI coordinator, who will oversee discrimination cases relating to race, color and national origin, by the end of the spring semester, the university said. The position was initially slated for appointment by the end of 2024.
“The Title VI coordinator is a new position, so the hiring process has taken a bit longer than we first estimated,” NYU spokesperson John Beckman said in a statement to WSN. “We’re confident the position will be filled during the current semester.”
NYU will be one of the first universities to create a position solely for Title VI concerns. The coordinator will work within the Office of Equal Opportunity to review Title VI violations on campus and will oversee training and education programs for students and faculty. In addition to preparing regular reports on cases, the coordinator will present an annual report to NYU’s board of trustees.
The coordinator’s responsibilities will mirror those of the university’s Title IX coordinator, who oversees complaints from students and staff, monitors training and motivation programs and administers changes to NYU’s policy on gender and sex-based discrimination.
The position was announced in July as part of NYU’s confidential settlement in a November 2023 lawsuit filed by three Jewish students who accused the university of an alleged indifference toward instances of antisemitism. In the joint settlement, NYU said the implementation of a Title VI coordinator would contribute to its “vigorous efforts to confront discrimination” on campus.
Last semester, NYU’s Title VI policy gained national attention after the university updated its non-discrimination and anti-harassment guidelines to include “code words, like ‘Zionist,’” as potentially discriminatory speech. After mandating modules that require students to agree to the guidelines, the university faced additional backlash from student groups who said it “sets a dangerous precedent.”
Several universities, including the University of Pennsylvania and Johns Hopkins University, also created offices dedicated to addressing Title VI concerns following a surge in pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses last spring.
Contact Omar Drissi at [email protected].