The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) enforces federal civil rights laws prohibiting discrimination in programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance from the Department of Education. Laws enforced by OCR include: (1) Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, and national origin; (2) Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sex; (3) Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, prohibiting discrimination on the basis of disability; (4) Age Discrimination Act of 1974; and (5) Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The OCR's enforcement authority extends to almost 15,000 school districts, over 3,600 colleges and universities, approximately 5,000 proprietary organizations, and thousands of libraries, vocational rehabilitation agencies, and correctional facilities. During fiscal year 1997, OCR's 12 enforcement offices focused on disability discrimination; discrimination against minorities in special education, remedial courses, and math, science and other advanced-placement courses; access to programs for limited-English-proficient students; racial and sexual harassment; discriminatory use of tests and assessments; discrimination in higher education admissions and the appropriate use of affirmative action; equity in athletics; and school and college desegregation. This annual report explains the laws protecting students and employees; outlines OCR's complaint resolution, compliance review, and technical assistance processes; and discusses 1997 case examples and enforcement actions. (MLH) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software.