Minnesota-based North Central University created the George Floyd Memorial Scholarship in 2020 but the scholarship opportunity has generated controversy for the Christian school, according to The College Fix.
NCU, located in Minneapolis, is home to approximately 1,100 students. It is affiliated with the Assemblies of God denomination and dates back to the 1930s.
According to the Fix, the exclusive nature of the scholarship caught the attention of an activist professor, William Jacobson, and his Equal Protection Project. Because of the race-based nature of the scholarship, Jacobson filed a federal civil rights complaint with the U.S. Department of Education in March.
Following up on that complaint, College Fix associate editor Matt Lamb tells AFN the school likely had good intentions with a scholarship named after Floyd, a black man who died after a police officer knelt on his neck while he was handcuffed and under arrest for passing counterfeit money.
“In any case, no matter who they're honoring,” Lamb says, “they cannot discriminate on the basis of race, which is what they are doing."
On the NCU website, the page advertising the George Floyd scholarship has been altered after the Fix contacted the school about the language. The section stating applicants must be “Black or African American” has been dropped. An introductory paragraph has dropped a reference to increasing the number of black students on campus.
The application still asks students if they identify as a person of “African descent,” according to the Fix.
Back in 2020, the NCU president urged other colleges and universities to create similar scholarship opportunities to honor Floyd. Around the country, those scholarships contribute approximately $800,000 annually to students.
According to Lamb, however, any scholarships based on the race of the applicant have been challenged, too.
"Other universities who have had similar scholarships, or programs, that are only open to certain racial groups or to women, have had to change their program after complaints have been filed,” he advises.
