The U.S. government on Thursday announced probes into hiring practices and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives by the state of Minnesota and Virginia's George Mason University.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration on Thursday opened a civil rights investigation into the hiring practices at George Mason University, expanding a national campaign against diversity policies to Virginia’s largest public university.

The Department of Education has launched a probed into George Mason University's hiring practices, the second time this month that the school has been the target of a federal investigation. A complaint by professors alleges that George Mason violated the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by giving preferential treatment to candidates from "underrepresented groups.