(WASHINGTON) — The Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General is investigating how the U.S. Coast Guard Academy handles allegations of racial bias and harassment, The Day reported.
The inspector general's review will "determine whether the Coast Guard Academy has effective processes for reporting, investigating and taking corrective action in response to allegations of race or ethnicity-based discrimination," according to a description on its website.
There is already an inquiry from Connecticut lawmakers, and some of their colleagues in Congress, asking for documents showing any allegations of harassment and bullying made by cadets or faculty members, and how they were handled. The lawmakers requested the documents by July 13, but the Coast Guard has yet to provide them in full.
A report developed by the Center for Urban Education at the request of the Coast Guard Academy, and released publicly in April, found that "ample opportunities exist" for the academy to improve "the overall academic experiences" of minority cadets. Specifically, it found that black cadets were more likely than their white peers to be more harshly punished for similar offenses, and found gaps in graduation and disenrollment rates for minorities, particularly black cadets, and women. The report issued a number of recommendations, including studying institutional policies to ensure they are fair to all and creating an academic and social environment that supports black cadets.
Reports of racial discrimination at the academy surfaced in late summer 2017, when a group of minority cadets told The Day racial slurs, ignorant comments and instances of disrespect are common on campus.
Click here to read the story.