Broward County Public Schools received an ultimatum from the U.S. Department of Education: end a Latino leadership course or lose a $30 million grant. Now, Latinos in Action courses have been canceled for the spring 2026 semester.
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights sent a letter to Broward Superintendent Howard Hepburn last Wednesday that gave BCPS five days to cancel the spring semester’s Latinos in Action courses, which the DOE called discriminatory against non-Latino students. On Friday, BCPS sent an email to parents about the decision to end the popular course in order to comply with federal requirements.
Latinos in Action, a nationwide educational program, was offered as an elective class or extracurricular club at 46 Broward middle and high schools and education centers. BCPS, which has a nearly 40% Hispanic student population, started offering the courses in 2015…