The GW
HATCHET
August 31, 2026 Vol. 123
Iss. 5
AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER • SERVING THE GW COMMUNITY SINCE 1904 • ONLINE AT GWHATCHET.COM
Granberg says DOJ findings of SMHS admissions discrimination are ‘incorrect’ ISAAC HARTE
CONTRIBUTING NEWS EDITOR
LAKSHMI DEV
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
University President Ellen Granberg disputed the Justice Department’s findings that the School of Medicine and Health Sciences illegally favored Black and Hispanic applicants in its admissions for its 2024 and 2025 incoming classes. Granberg, in a community message Friday, said GW received a letter with the DOJ’s findings on Thurs-
day, claiming that SMHS discriminated against white and Asian students based on their race, which she denied, saying the school’s admission process follows the law. The determination is the result of the second DOJ probe into GW in the past year, following August 2025 findings that the University violated federal civil rights law by failing to combat antisemitism on campus. “We are disappointed by the DOJ’s conclusions, which we firmly believe are incorrect,” Granberg said in the message.
Granberg said officials are “closely reviewing” the DOJ’s findings, which she said stemmed from a compliance review the department opened in January into diversity, equity and inclusion in GW’s admission practices. She said legal processes limit the amount of information officials are permitted to share to the public and updates will be made when possible. “The University has been and remains steadfastly committed to non-discrimination and Title VI compliance while advancing our academic mission and pursuing excellence
in preparing health care leaders,” Granberg said in Friday’s email. DOJ officials said in a release Thursday that its Civil Rights Division determined SMHS officials selected Black applicants for interviews at a significantly higher rate, gave Black applications “disproportionately” higher interview scores than comparable Asian applicants and admitted Black students who had significantly lower MCAT scores than white or Asian applicants in 2024 and 2025. See DOJ Page 5
LEXI CRITCHETT | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR The Department of Justice building on Pennsylvania Avenue.
GW reviewing memo upping scrutiny on F-1 visa internship program SARAH GROSS
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
People march through the National Mall during the annual March on Washington Friday.
NOAH RABER | PHOTOGRAPHER
Thousands march to ‘defend the vote’ as civil rights protections weaken under Trump ARUNMOY DAS
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
Thousands gathered at the March on Washington Friday to advocate for voting rights, citing attacks on civil rights protections under President Donald Trump’s second administration. National Action Network and Drum Major Institute — two civil rights organizations — hosted the four-hour long event at the Lincoln Memorial where multiple members of Congress as well as civil rights, religious and labor union leaders spoke about the role voting rights play in enabling political and economic advances for minority communities in the United States. Several thousand participants, who travelled from various parts of the country to march in D.C., attended the event, with several
participants saying they hoped to inspire more Americans to register and exercise their right to vote in the upcoming midterm elections, as well as stand against the Supreme Court’s recent ruling weakening the Voting Rights Act. NAN and DMI organized the event to commemorate the memory of the original March on Washington in 1963 and to defend the right to vote for all citizens in every community, according to the event’s website. The crowd of participants — who ranged from plainclothed college students and self-described “baby boomers” to those donning red cloaks inspired by Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale “— gathered around the steps of the Lincoln Memorial starting around 8 a.m. and stretched out
to the front of the fenced off Reflecting Pool and beyond the foreground of the Memorial, with some carrying signs protesting the Supreme Court decision and invoking messages from civil rights icons, like “I am sick and tired of being sick and tired” by voting and women’s rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer and “Let’s get into good trouble” by civil rights leader John Lewis. In between speakers, who began their programming around 9:20 a.m and finished around 1:20 p.m., attendants chanted slogans like “No justice, no peace.” Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) said the march’s participants should remember the context in which Martin Luther King Jr. made his “I Have a Dream” speech — with Friday marking its 63rd anniversary — in which the civil rights leader
advocated for both a just and equitable society for all Americans, regardless of the color of their skin. Sanders said King’s dream of a more just and equitable society is under greater threat due not only attacks on voting rights by the Trump administration — like attempting to restrict mail-in ballots and the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, which would require voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship before voting — but also rising wealth inequality in the United States, which disproportionately affects Black Americans. “Donald Trump is an authoritarian who is deliberately trying to destroy faith in American democracy, create confusion, sow mistrust in our elections and make it harder for Americans to vote,” Sanders said.
GW is reviewing new guidance from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement program calling for increased scrutiny from university officials when approving internships, externships, practicums or co-ops for international students. The Student and Exchange Visitor Program, which is run by ICE, issued messages on Aug. 12 and Aug. 24 to all universities certified to have international and exchange students, calling for increased scrutiny of Curricular Practical Training approvals, which allow F-1 visa-holding students to engage in off-campus employment, internships, externships, practicum or co-ops, to ensure compliance with federal regulations. The messages state that designated school officials at participating institutions can only authorize CPT’s when the training is an “integral” part of an established curriculum and is directly related to the student’s major area of study. The Aug. 24 message states that universities who fail to comply with SEVP regulations risk losing certification to enroll international students. The message defines “integral” as meaning that all students — international or domestic — enrolled in an established curriculum are required to complete the training provided by the CPT to complete the curriculum. It states that while SEVP was auditing schools for compliance with these regulations, they noticed some institutions have described CPT “as if it is optional practical training” rather than integral despite “clear” regulatory requirements. A University spokesperson said GW is currently evaluating recent guidance from SEVP regarding CPT
and said they will update the International Services Office website, which outlines the CPT application process with any changes following the review. GW’s International Student Office states that activities carried out as part of CPT must be “an integral part of your curriculum.” The office has not issued an update, as it has done in the past when policy changes may impact international students, regarding the new guidance. SEVP sent the messages to all designated school officials at SEVP-certified schools, saying SEVP is committed to “identifying and investigating” schools that attempt to “undermine or purposely bypass” the federal regulations governing CPT programs. If SEVP suspects school officials are “abusing” CPT to create work opportunities that are not required for academic studies, they may face additional scrutiny and action from SEVP and Homeland Security Investigations, which includes potentially withdrawing the schools’ SEVP certification, which allows universities to enroll international students on F-1 or M-1 visas, according to the messages. The messages call for universities to “carefully review” all CPT requests and academic requirements, ensure CPT is only authorized when “truly integral” to the program and required for the completion of a degree, maintain thorough records regarding curricular necessity and consult with SEVP field representatives with any questions. International students said they have not received communication from the ISO regarding the message and would like to receive more information about how the University is handling the guidance and how it will affect their future internship opportunities.
Students join local push to block Amazon’s Loudoun County data center plans DIYA JHAWAR
CONTRIBUTING NEWS EDITOR
Students are joining Loudoun County residents in efforts to pause Amazon’s plans to develop new data centers on GW’s Virginia campus, citing potential environmental impacts and growing local opposition to the construction of artificial intelligence infrastructure. The advocacy follows Amazon’s July proposal to build over 800,000 square feet worth of data centers on the 120-acre Virginia Science and Technology Campus after GW sold the property to them in February for $427 million dollars. Loudoun County residents have pushed back against the company’s expansion in the area, which is already home to the largest concentration of data centers in the world, while students have taken to social media and have joined local residents in distributing a petition calling for the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors to establish a moratorium on data center construction in the area, citing extensive natural resource consumption, traffic, noise and pollution. After Amazon filed an initial proposal WHAT’S
INSIDE
with Loudoun County July 28 seeking approval from the county to build four data centers on the campus totaling 805,092 square feet, both Loudoun County officials and GW students have centered their advocacy on stopping the construction of the data center. Ryan Caldwell, a sophomore and political science major, has taken to both TikTok and Instagram Reels calling for GW students, local community members and anti-data center political groups to work together to “pressure local officials” into putting a pause on Amazon’s proposal to build data centers on the land. Caldwell said he recognizes “some benefits” of building data centers, he said he questioned the environmental implications and the “nature of the agreement” between GW and Amazon, where a data center will replace an academic institution. “You’re essentially sacrificing this academic environment, which has for years grown students into future leaders and for years has provided opportunities in the Loudoun County area, to replace it with a data center, and I think that is particularly interesting,” Caldwell said.
NEWS The Medical Faculty Associates’ revenue manager will lay off 39 employees starting in October amid shifting operations. Page 3
ARWEN CLEMENS | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER The Innovation Center at the Virginia Science and Technology Campus.
OPINIONS The Editorial Board urges GW’s student community to apply their passion for politics to D.C.’s local government. Page 6
CULTURE After a seven-year-long hiatus, a class about Washington sex scandals makes a return to campus. Page 7
SPORTS Sophomore swimmer Mia Hren competed for her home country, Croatia, in the 2026 Mediterranean Games last week. Page 8