Universities in Alabama, Missouri, and Iowa are closing their diversity, equity, and inclusion offices before the fall term. This is because more schools are following laws that ban the ideology.
Auburn University said Monday night that its DEI office would be closing on August 15. This comes after the University of Alabama system said last week that all three of its schools would also close their DEI offices.
After Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey (R-AL) passed a bill in March that made it illegal for people of certain races or sexualities to take part in school events and programs, the schools in Alabama took these steps. It is also against the law to show preference based on race or sexuality or to teach that “meritocracy or traits such as hard work ethic are racist or sexist.” By October 1, all public schools in the state must follow the rules.
Auburn hasn’t said anything about future offices with similar goals to a DEI office yet, but the University of Alabama system did. They just moved Dr. Christine Taylor, who was the head of DEI and was also vice president and associate provost for diversity, equity, and inclusion, to lead the new Division of Opportunities, Connections, and Success.
Schools across the country that are facing DEI bans from the government have taken similar steps. They have just changed the names of some offices and moved workers, which will still allow DEI ideas to affect how the university works.
On Tuesday, the University of Missouri also said it would be closing its DEI section. This came after Maurice Gipson, the school’s DEI Vice Chancellor, said he would be leaving in August.
Mun Choi, President of Mizzou, told the press on Tuesday that the office would be reorganized. To put it in writing, Choi said, “In the last two years, 13 pieces of DEI legislation have been introduced in the Missouri Legislature.” Our proactive reactions helped stop these bills from becoming law. Some of these answers were getting rid of diversity hiring statements, ending admissions and scholarship programs that are based on race, and making sure that “inclusion” really means “inclusion for all.”
Last week, Choi thanked Gipson for his service and said that he and Choi would talk about how to keep DEI living at the school while also protecting it from political pressure to be thrown out. Choi said that no one will lose their job.
Following advice from the Board of Regents and state politicians, Iowa State University closed its DEI offices last week. This cut five jobs, though three of them were already open.
The closing happened because the board told DEI offices to close and be reorganized. It was also passed by the state assembly, which added punishments for breaking the rules. It was against the law for DEI to have offices, hire employees just for DEI, or spend money on DEI unless it was needed for accreditation or by law.
