A federal judge in Boston has stepped in to halt a Trump administration effort that would have forced universities across the United States to quickly gather and submit detailed data about the race and sex of students applying to and enrolling in their institutions.
The order, issued by U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV, temporarily blocks the policy and pushes back an imminent reporting deadline while the legal battle unfolds.
The dispute centers on a new requirement tied to an annual federal education survey used to collect information from universities nationwide. The Trump administration had instructed schools that participate in federal student financial aid programs to provide admissions-related data broken down by race and gender. Officials said the data would help determine whether colleges were complying with the landmark Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard ruling that ended race-conscious admissions policies in higher education.
A coalition of 17 Democratic-led states challenged the move in court, arguing the new data demand was rushed and legally questionable. Their lawsuit prompted the judge’s emergency order.
Colleges and universities had been facing a fast-approaching deadline to complete the survey. Instead, the judge extended the reporting window until March 25, giving the court time to examine the states’ challenge and, as he wrote, ensure an “orderly resolution” of the dispute.
The contested data would be collected through the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, a nationwide reporting system run by the National Center for Education Statistics under the U.S. Department of Education. Since the mid-1980s, the system has been used to gather information about universities’ finances, enrollment patterns, admissions practices and student outcomes.
The Trump administration altered the survey after Donald Trump issued a memorandum arguing that federal officials lacked adequate information to determine whether universities were continuing to factor race into admissions decisions despite the Supreme Court ruling. The memo cited concerns that institutions might still be relying on indirect indicators such as diversity statements or other “racial proxies.”
Following the directive, Education Secretary Linda McMahon announced that universities would have to submit admissions and enrollment data categorized by race and sex, covering the 2025–2026 academic year as well as six prior years.
The Office of Management and Budget finalized those reporting requirements in December.
For now, the judge’s temporary restraining order freezes the plan and buys universities time, while the court weighs whether the federal government overstepped its authority in demanding the new data.
