Dept. of Ed to cut off money to colleges, universities, K-12 schools that promote DEI

The Department of Education recently warned colleges and universities, as well as K-12 schools, to stop their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives or face the loss of federal funds. 

The warning came through a Friday “Dear Colleague” letter penned by Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor, who leads the Office for Civil Rights of the Department of Education. The letter is addressed to “preschool, elementary, secondary, and postsecondary educational institutions that receive federal financial assistance from the Department.”

“Discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin is illegal and morally reprehensible,” the letter opens. 

[RELATED: UNC removes DEI course requirements after Trump’s executive orders]

Trainor mentions that American schools have “discriminated against students on the basis of race, including white and Asian students,” and calls such discriminatory practices “pervasive and repugnant.” 

He also condemns schools that have “toxically indoctrinated students” with an ideology that teaches that America is fundamentally a racist country. 

Those who engage in “discriminatory practices” do so by justifying them as part of a broader push for DEI, Trainor writes. 

Citing the 2023 Supreme Court decision Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard that banned affirmative action in higher education admissions, Trainor claims that “the Supreme Court’s holding applies more broadly. At its core, the test is simple: If an educational institution treats a person of one race differently than it treats another person because of that person’s race, the educational institution violates the law.”

He continues, applying the implications of the historic Supreme Court decision more broadly: “Federal law thus prohibits covered entities from using race in decisions pertaining to admissions, hiring, promotion, compensation, financial aid, scholarships, prizes, administrative support, discipline, housing, graduation ceremonies, and all other aspects of student, academic, and campus life. Put simply, educational institutions may neither separate or segregate students based on race, nor distribute benefits or burdens based on race.”

[RELATED: Dozens of Dept. of Ed. employees placed on leave following Trump’s anti-DEI order: REPORT]

The letter also specifically calls out DEI programs, stating that they “frequently preference certain racial groups and teach students that certain racial groups bear unique moral burdens that others do not.” These programs “stigmatize students who belong to particular racial groups based on crude racial stereotypes. Consequently, they deny students the ability to participate fully in the life of a school.”

The letter announces that the Department will “assess compliance” with federal law starting “no later than [Feb. 28],” and warns school leaders that, unless they end their racially-discriminatory practices, they could “face potential loss of federal funding.” 

A Department of Education spokesperson told Campus Reform: “The Department of Education will no longer allow education entities to discriminate on the basis of race. This isn’t complicated. When in doubt, every school should consult the SFFA legal test contained in the [Dear Colleague Letter]: ‘If an educational institution treats a person of one race differently than it treats another person because of that person’s race, the educational institution violates the law.’ Additional guidance on implementation is forthcoming.”

Campus Reform has reached out to the Department of Education for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.