Report details schools' efforts to rebrand rather than eliminate DEI offices in accordance with state laws

A recent study says that American universities who have been forced to eliminate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) departments have instead chosen to rebrand them.

The research, conducted by CriticalRace.org, found that of the 26 universities evaluated in states that have banned DEI programs, 10 chose to merely replace them with new offices with similar programming or personnel. The list includes major public universities such as Florida State University, University of Alabama, University of Utah, Oklahoma State University, University of Tennessee, and University of Iowa.

[RELATED: University of North Texas removes DEI-based faculty groups]

“DEI isn’t going away, it’s just going underground,” the CriticalRace.org report says. “Whether campuses are renaming their DEI offices, or moving administrators into other departments to do the same work, DEI still exists.”

Campus Reform has reported on various attempts by such schools to rebrand rather than fully eliminate DEI-based offices.

In May, the University of Iowa replaced its DEI office with the “Division of Access, Opportunity, and Diversity” following a state law against DEI programming in higher education.

The division was designed to ensure compliance with the new law, while helping “students, faculty, and staff build cultural competency skills needed to understand and respect the values, attitudes, norms, and beliefs that differ across cultures.”

However, not all universities have been successful in their rebranding attempts. 

After Texas passed its ban in January, UT Dallas renamed its DEI office as the Office of Campus Resources and Support (OCRS).

“[I]f you look past what maybe you call it, you know, diversity and inclusion, if it’s things like mentoring, recruiting and the like, support, we will continue to do those things. And so it’ll go under a different name,” President Richard Benson told KERA News at the time.

However, the OCRS was shut down in April, after Texas Senator Brandon Creighton insisted the law demands that universities cannot evade its provisions by merely changing the titles of DEI initiatives.

[RELATED: UNC Wilmington students protest against removal of DEI positions]

Other universities on the CriticalRace.org report have defended their rebranded offices, arguing that they are in compliance with state law.

Florida State’s Amy Farnum-Petronis said that following the closing of its DEI office, “[a]ny functions allowed by law were moved to the Human Resources Office of Equal Opportunity Compliance and Engagement (EOCE).”

In a statement to Campus Reform, the University of Alabama said that all “initiatives, programs and responsibilities across campus that are not in compliance with applicable state and federal laws are being discontinued.” The state law does not take effect until Oct. 1. 

As noted by CriticalRace.org’s report, more than a dozen additional states have pending legislation that would ban DEI offices. 

Campus Reform contacted Oklahoma State, University of Tennessee, University of Iowa, and UT Dallas for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.

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