The Justice Department announced on Friday:
Yesterday, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, launched an investigation into Lincoln Memorial University to determine whether the university is engaged in discrimination against its Jewish students. Among other concerns, the investigation will determine whether the university’s DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine is intentionally preventing Jewish students from completing their exams during the Spring semester.
Osteopathic Medicine programs are offered currently on the University's Harrogate and Knoxville campuses. While DOJ's press release does not give details of the Department's specific concerns that led to its investigation, WBIR News has additional details. It reports that two Orthodox Jewish students in the Osteopathic Medicine program are concerned about changes that were introduced in the doctoral student Handbook for the first time at the beginning of the current Spring Semester. The newly revised handbook says: "Religious holidays and holy days do not qualify for an excused absence from examinations." Previously the students had been able to obtain religious exemptions. A statement from the University said:
Lincoln Memorial University firmly upholds the protections established by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. We take seriously our responsibility to ensure equal access and non-discrimination in our educational settings.
