Trump Administration Gives Schools a Deadline to End DEI Programs or Risk Losing Federal Money

The Trump administration is giving America’s schools and universities two weeks to eliminate diversity initiatives or risk losing federal money, raising the stakes in the president’s fight against “ wokeness.”

In a memo Friday, the Education Department gave an ultimatum to stop using “racial preferences” as a factor in admissions, financial aid, hiring or other areas. Schools are being given 14 days to end any practice that treats students or workers differently because of their race.

Educators at colleges nationwide were rushing to evaluate their risk and decide whether to stand up for practices they believe are legal. The sweeping demand threatens to upend all aspects of campus operations, from essays on college applications to classroom lessons and campus clubs.

It’s meant to correct what the memo described as rampant discrimination in education, often against white and Asian students.

{snip}

The memo is an extension of President Donald Trump’s executive order banning diversity, equity and inclusion programs. As legal justification, it cites the 2023 Supreme Court decision barring race as a factor in college admissions.

“Put simply, educational institutions may neither separate or segregate students based on race, nor distribute benefits or burdens based on race,” it said.

On Monday the Education Department announced it also cut $600 million in grants for organizations that train teachers. The programs promoted “divisive” concepts like DEI, critical race theory and social justice activism, the department said.

Confusion around the implications of Trump’s anti-DEI order was apparent at last week’s confirmation hearing for education secretary nominee Linda McMahon. Asked whether classes on African American history would run afoul of the president’s order, McMahon said she wasn’t certain.

{snip}

The new guidance takes aim directly at college admissions, suggesting colleges have sought to work around the Supreme Court’s decision.

College essays, for instance, cannot be used to predict a student’s race, the guidance says. In the Supreme Court decision, Chief Justice John Roberts said nothing prevents colleges “from considering an applicant’s discussion of how race affected his or her life,” though he warned that colleges couldn’t use essays as an indirect workaround to consider students’ race.

The memo also said it’s unlawful for colleges to eliminate standardized testing requirements “to achieve a desired racial balance or to increase racial diversity.” Dozens of colleges across the U.S. have dropped SAT and ACT requirements in recent years, citing concerns the exams favor students from high-income families.

{snip}

Trump has called for the elimination of the Education Department, and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency has slashed dozens of contracts deemed wasteful.

{snip}