University of Pennsylvania removes DEI position titles amid federal crackdown
Following the Trump administration's crackdown on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives in higher education, the University of Pennsylvania recently eliminated several DEI titles.
Many DEI positions have been renamed so that they no longer contain references to 'diversity' or 'inclusion,' according to The Daily Pennsylvanian.
Following the Trump administration’s crackdown on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives in higher education, the University of Pennsylvania recently eliminated more than a dozen DEI position titles.
Many DEI positions have been renamed so that they no longer contain references to “diversity” or “inclusion,” according to The Daily Pennsylvanian.
For instance, one position previously entitled “Associate Vice Provost for University Life — Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging” has been renamed to “Associate Vice Provost for University Life for Student Success and Engagement.”
Another position previously called “Vice Dean for Diversity Equity and Inclusion” has been rebranded as the “Vice Dean for Academic Excellence and Engagement.”
Following President Trump’s anti-DEI executive order, University of Pennsylvania Interim President J. Larry Jameson wrote that the school would attempt to “sustain” its “missions” while complying with federal law.
“I write today to provide guidance to sustain our missions while ensuring Penn complies with federal law,” Jameson explained. “Given the rapidly changing landscape, we are also reviewing our policies, programs, and practices.”
“We have initiated a review of our programs in this area to ensure that they are both consistent with the new federal government guidance and Executive Orders, federal, state, and local law, and our values,” the university wrote on its website about the changes. “We remain committed to providing a respectful and welcoming environment to our faculty, staff, and students.”
Every University of Pennsylvania graduate school has removed references to DEI, according to The Daily Pennsylvanian.
Last month, the university decided to remove DEI references from its medical school’s web page, according to CBS News. Pennsylvania State Sen. Anthony Williams said at the time that “it seemed like the university was concerned about the potential financial impact from the current administration’s stance.”
In February, the U.S. Department of Education announced that the federal government would begin cracking down on DEI policies and programs, specifically warning schools who retained DEI initiatives that they may be subject to the revocation of federal funding.
“But under any banner, discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin is, has been, and will continue to be illegal,” the notice continued. “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.”
Since the notice, many schools have begun eliminating DEI programs, including the University of Cincinnati and the University of Southern California.
Campus Reform has contacted the University of Pennsylvania for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
