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U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Trustees of University of Pennsylvania

December 2023
University of Pennsylvania (Private college or university)
Philadelphia, PA

Identity of Speakers

  • The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
    Unaffiliated
    Other

    Federal agency responsible for enforcing laws that prohibit workplace discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or genetic information.

Resources

Additional Information

  • Incident Nature:
    Lawsuit
    Other
  • Incident Political Orientation:
    Not Clear
  • Incident Responses:
    Litigation
    Title IX or other federal statute
  • Incident Status:
    In litigation Federal District Court
  • Was Speech Code incident

Summary

On December 18, 2023, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission opened an investigation into the University of Pennsylvania to determine whether the university maintained a hostile work environment for Jewish employees. The investigation stemmed from a charge filed by then EEOC Commissioner Andrea Lucas, who cited a reason to believe Penn engaged in a pattern of harassment based on religion, national origin, or race. The EEOC said identifying potential victims and witnesses was central to its inquiry.

In July 2025 the EEOC issued a subpoena seeking detailed employee records, including names, contact information, religious affiliation, membership in Jewish organizations, and records related to the Jewish Studies Program and the university’s antisemitism task force. The agency also requested participants in confidential listening sessions and de anonymized survey responses.

Penn opposed producing such lists, arguing they would compromise employee safety and privacy, could violate constitutional rights, and recalled historical harms associated with government lists of Jewish people. The university emphasized it had already provided nearly nine hundred pages of employee complaint materials and offered to circulate EEOC contact information to all employees to allow voluntary reporting without disclosing identities.

In November 2025 the EEOC filed a federal lawsuit to enforce its subpoena, asserting Penn had not fully complied. Penn responded that it had cooperated but would not provide personal information without consent, calling the EEOC’s demands disconcerting and unnecessary.

The subpoena prompted concern among faculty, student, and higher education groups. Multiple Penn affiliated organizations, including the American Association of University Professors and the Penn chapter of the AAUP, filed to intervene, arguing that forcing disclosure would create a list of employees identified by religion and raise constitutional and safety concerns.

In early 2026 Penn formally asked the federal judge to deny enforcement of the subpoena. On January 13 groups representing Jewish faculty and students filed a motion to intervene. On January 20 Penn filed a brief opposing enforcement, reiterating that its alternative approach, informing employees and allowing voluntary outreach to the EEOC, sufficiently addressed investigative needs while protecting rights. The EEOC filed a brief urging enforcement under the court’s January 27 deadline.