FARMINGTON—The Davis School District (DSD) received a letter of compliance last week from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) stating the district has satisfied its obligations under a 2021 settlement. The letter states that the DOJ is no longer monitoring the settlement agreement and recognizes “the entire district for (its) urgent and sustained implementation of the anti-discrimination remedies,” a DSD release said.

The assessment was made on a “multi-year review of the bi-annual reports and other documentation, many in-person and virtual site visits, and weekly compliance meetings with the district.

“We have also taken into consideration various mechanisms that the district has embedded into its operations to ensure that the anti-discrimination safeguards required by our agreement will endure,” the letter states.

In 2021, the district reached a settlement agreement with the DOJ after a two-year-investigation found serious racial harassment and discrimination of Black and Asian-American students had taken place.

“The investigation revealed persistent failures to respond to reports of race-based harassment of Black and Asian-American students by district staff and other students,” according to a DOJ release at the time. “The department’s review, which focused on 2015-2020, found hundreds of documented uses of the N-word, among other racial epithets, derogatory racial comments and physical assaults targeting district students at dozens of schools.”

As part of the settlement the district was required to meet certain criteria laid out by the DOJ. The compliance letter states the district has met those requirements.

“Please extend our appreciation to the many administrators, teachers, and staff who have contributed to these important efforts and in particular, to the dedicated and talented staff of the Office of Equal Opportunity,” the DOJ stated.

“We understand we have a long journey ahead to achieve the culture and climate we seek for all our students, but we are encouraged by the voices of our students who tell us they see improvements,” Davis School District Superintendent Dr. Dan Linford said. “We have confidence that the systems we have built will ensure our accountability in upholding our students’ constitutional rights. We hope to be a model of what is possible when earnest leaders and communities come together to improve the lives of children.