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(The Center Square) – Medical watchdog Do No Harm filed a complaint with the Department of Education against two Oklahoma schools that offer nursing scholarship programs that the watchdog says discriminate on the basis of race by only awarding the scholarship to those of American Indian descent.
Chief Medical Officer at Do No Harm Dr. Kurt Miceli told The Center Square that Northeastern State University and Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College “are excluding qualified individuals from rich learning opportunities based solely on race, regardless of their academic ability, skills, experiences and perspectives.”
Miceli said this exclusion is in effect “even if [students] commit to serving in Indian health facilities.”
“Favoring one race over all others is not only unlawful and unjust but also discredits the value of hard work and meritocratic achievement that is critical to our healthcare-education system,” Miceli said.
“Do No Harm urges both universities to reverse their discriminatory ways and recenter their nursing scholarship program around excellence and academic rigor,” Miceli said.
The scholarship Do No Harm refers to is the Northeast Oklahoma Recruitment and Advancement of American Indians into Nursing (NEORAAIN) program offered to students at both Northeastern State University (NSU) and Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College (NEO).
The program requires that those applying “must be American Indian students enrolled in a federally recognized tribe,” according to NSU.
The program’s stated goals include increasing "the number of Native American nurses,” supporting "Native American students pursuing nursing degrees,” and preparing these students to “serve in Indian health facilities after graduation.”
NSU said “the NEORAAIN program is funded by a grant received through a cooperative agreement with Indian Health Services.”
Neither NSU nor NEO media relations responded to The Center Square’s individual media requests.
In its Civil Rights complaint, Do No Harm requested that the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights “open an investigation into NSU’s and NEO’s NEORAAIN Scholarship and find that its brazen race discrimination violates Title VI.”
“Through the NEORAAIN scholarship program, these institutions are unlawfully discriminating against white students and other races they disfavor,” the complaint said.
According to Do No Harm, both NSU and NEO “receive federal funding and are subject to federal civil rights laws.”
Do No Harm additionally recommends that the Office for Civil Rights should consider “referring the matter to the Department of Justice for further or concurrent action.”
The Department of Education has not yet responded to The Center Square’s request for comment.
