Officials at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill should cooperate with a federal investigation into how the school handles sexual assault cases.

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights will examine complaints that the university did not respond correctly to sexual assault concerns and did not provide impartial investigations into allegations.

This matter needs to be thoroughly exposed to the light of day because taxpayer money should not be used in any way that helps protect criminal conduct.

In addition, parents should expect that their children are attending a school that will do all it can to protect those who obey the law and also will not interfere in the pursuit of justice.

The university has hired Gina Smith, a national expert on college sexual misconduct and a former prosecutor. We hope that is a sign the school intends to do all it can to keep the campus safe and not an attempt at a fig leaf to hide improprieties.

The ongoing athletics-academic scandal at UNC-Chapel Hill has hurt the university’s reputation. If one scandal went unreported, it is no surprise that suspicions of another scandal have spurred campus protests.

For all these reasons, school officials should cooperate fully with the investigation.