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Riham Feshir

U.S. Dept. of Education keeps watch on St. Cloud schools

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Tech High School in St. Cloud, Minn.
Tech High School in St. Cloud, Minn., on March 19, 2015.
Peter Cox | MPR News

The U.S. Department of Education is continuing to monitor a case involving racial and ethnic harassment at St. Cloud Area Schools.

The federal agency previously opened an investigation when reports of discrimination arose in 2010. The Minnesota Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN) said the investigation never closed and recent allegations have brought it back to the forefront.

A spokesperson for the Department of Education said in a statement Monday that the department is "currently monitoring a resolution agreement signed in 2011 with St. Cloud Area School District in Minnesota involving harassment on the basis of race, color, and national origin." The spokesperson also said the case "has not been reopened for investigation."

St. Cloud School District spokeswoman Tami DeLand said the investigation involves the Department of Education Office of Civil Rights making frequent visits to schools.

"We are still in the monitoring period of the Office of Civil Rights agreement," she said. "And they are making a visit to the district next week. There is no new investigation."

CAIR-MN officials said they detailed a number of incidents at St. Cloud high schools involving Somali students facing a hostile environment a few years ago.

Members of the St. Cloud Somali community recently sought to address allegations reported more widely after a social media post implied a Tech High School Somali student was a member of ISIS.

CAIR-MN Executive Director Jaylani Hussein said in a statement Monday the group welcomes federal attention to the St. Cloud case, but "it is truly troubling to see the recurrence of a similar level of harassment targeting Somali students that we saw few years ago. Somali students from St. Cloud Technical Senior High School that we spoke with have reported a number of incidents of harassment and bullying by students targeting Somali students."

Hussein said U.S. Department of Education officials will be in St. Cloud April 13-14 to meet with students and district administration.