Illinois State University is sending a calming message to students and employees as the Trump administration ramps up efforts to squelch diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.
Attorney General Pam Bondi recently sent a Dear Colleagues letter to colleges and universities outlining best practice guidance to avoid unlawful discrimination.
“Entities are urged to review all programs, policies, and partnerships to ensure compliance with federal law, and discontinue any practices that discriminate on the basis of a protected status,” said the letter.
Some instances the guidance views as problematic and put federal funding at risk:
- Sex-based selection for contracts.
- Training that promotes discrimination based on protected characteristics. “DEI training that includes statements stereotyping individuals based on protected characteristics-such as "all white people are inherently privileged," "toxic masculinity," etc.
- Race or sex-based internship programs, scholarships, fellowships, or leadership initiatives, “even if framed as addressing underrepresentation.”
- “Any policy that sets racial benchmarks or mandates demographic representation in candidate pools, such as requiring a certain percentage of finalists to be from "diverse" backgrounds.
- Cultural competency requirements for lived experience or cross-cultural skills in ways that effectively evaluate candidates' racial or ethnic backgrounds rather than objective qualifications. For instance, requiring faculty candidates to describe how their "cultural background informs their teaching" may function as a proxy for race or ethnicity.
In an email to the ISU campus Friday, University President Aondover Tarhule said university lawyers and the Institutional Resiliency Steering Team are working to digest and understand the obligations the memo lays out and ensure compliance while respecting ISU's core values.
“I recognize the anxiety and confusion some of you may be feeling about the impact of the changing federal landscape on higher education,” said Tarhule. “I suggest that we view this as an opportunity to strengthen our resiliency as an institution.”
Tarhule said he is confident the Redbird community will successfully navigate the developments.
State officials have called on colleges and universities not to abandon values of cultural diversity. And Tarhule has previously supported those values.
