ORLANDO, Fla. — The University of South Florida faces a federal investigation over a scholarship available only to Black and Hispanic graduate students — a probe targeting a 40-year-old program that has been touted as a success by the state.

The scholarship is offered by eight other Florida universities, and it is not clear why the U.S. Department of Education took issue only with USF. Other universities with the scholarship program include the University of Central Florida, Florida State University and the University of Florida.

In its letter to USF, first reported by the Tampa Bay Times, the federal agency said on March 13 that its Office of Civil Rights received a complaint that the Tampa university “discriminates against students based on race” by its promotion and involvement with the McKnight Doctoral Fellowship.

The agency did not respond to an emailed request for comment.

The probe comes after the education department sent a February memo to all universities and schools receiving federal funds telling them they “must cease using race preferences and stereotypes as a factor in their admissions, hiring, promotion, compensation, scholarships, prizes, administrative support, sanctions, discipline, and beyond.”

Then, on March 14, the U.S. Department of Education announced that 45 universities and colleges were under investigation for working with “The PhD Project,” an organization that “seeks to increase diversity in the business world” by helping “historically underrepresented” students get doctoral degrees and then jobs teaching.

It also said five universities, including USF, faced scrutiny for their involvement with “impermissible race-based scholarships” — the first public notice of the McKnight Fellowship probe.

“Students must be assessed according to merit and accomplishment, not prejudged by the color of their skin,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement about the two investigations. “We will not yield on this commitment.”

The McKnight Fellowship, founded in 1984 and funded in part through the state legislature, has helped more than 1,600 Black and Hispanic students earn PhDs, according to a budget document from the Florida Department of Education.

The fellowship’s goal is to “address the under-representation of African American and Hispanic faculty at colleges and universities in Florida by increasing the pool of candidates qualified with Ph.D. degrees to teach at the college and university levels,” a program flyer says.

Students awarded the fellowship receive up to $5,000 each semester for five academic years, plus an annual stipend of $13,000, the flyer says.

In September, the State Board of Education adopted its annual budget request to be submitted to the Florida Legislature. For the upcoming 2025-26 school year, it asked for $3.5 million for the McKnight Fellowship — the same amount received the last several years — and the request noted the program has increased the number of PhD graduates and has a high retention rate.

The fellowship is run by the Florida Education Fund, which lawmakers created to manage the scholarship money.

USF did not respond to a request for comment. But in a statement to WUSF on Tuesday, spokesperson Ryan Hughes said that the university was reviewing the letter from the federal agency and “will fully cooperate with the review,” and “continue to work with the state and federal governments to comply with all guidance, policies and laws.”

Hughes said the McKnight Fellowship was a “longstanding program that is offered at numerous colleges and universities in Florida and is permitted under state law.”

UCF has not received a letter from the education department about the scholarship, spokesperson Courtney Gilmartin said. Earlier this week, the university website included information about the McKnight Fellowship but by Wednesday clicking on that section led to an error message.

FSU also has not received a letter about the scholarship, said Amy Farnum-Patronis, a university spokesperson, in an email.

UF did not respond to a request for comment.

Both FSU and UF still had information on the McKnight Fellowship available on their websites this week, with FSU highlighting students who’d successfully completed their PhDs with help from the scholarship.

One biomedical sciences PhD candidate wrote that the McKnight scholarship helped her research more efficient cancer therapies.

“The McKnight Doctoral Fellowship is giving me the platform to make a difference by allowing me to further my education and giving me the resources to do so,” she wrote.

Florida Atlantic University, another school that participates in the scholarship, also said it has not received a letter from the federal department. Lisa Metcalf, an FAU spokeswoman, said the McKnight scholarship is listed on the university website for information purposes for graduate students, but it is not “run through the university, nor advertised or supported … in any formal way.”

The February memo the federal agency sent to schools and universities challenging race-based efforts prompted several federal lawsuits, including one from the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Education Association that argue the education department’s stance violates due process and the First Amendment.

USF is also was one of 60 universities that received a letter from the federal education department saying it faces an investigation over claims of anti-Semitic harassment related to protests against Israel’s military action in Gaza after the October 2023 Hamas attack.

President Donald Trump issued an executive order Thursday largely shuttering the U.S. Department of Education, but the administration said functions of the Office of Civil Rights, which initiated both USF investigations, will continue.

Other Florida universities that participate in the McKnight Fellowship include Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, Florida Institute of Technology, Florida International University and University of Miami.

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Scott Travis of the South Florida Sun Sentinel contributed to this story.

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