Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, recently announced that it will eliminate its office for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) in response to the Trump administration’s anti-DEI policies.
The university announced the changes to its DEI initiatives on Wednesday, specifically attributing the change to executive orders issued by President Trump shortly after he was inaugurated in January.
“The executive orders (issued Jan. 20 and Jan. 21) to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs in organizations receiving federal funding make clear that there are consequences for those who do not comply,” CWRU President Eric Kaler said in a statement.
“We have watched the evolution of the legal challenges to these executive orders, and, as we have seen among some of our peers already, it is clear we must be in compliance with them to receive the federal funding that is critical to our present and future,” Kaler continued.
Kaler also said that, “effective immediately,” the university would close its Office for Diversity, Equity and Inclusive Engagement and replace it with an Office for Campus Enrichment and Engagement.
The DEI office’s web page is now no longer active on the school’s website.
“We will continue to assess programming and processes across the university to ensure they comply with law and support our community,” Kaler’s message concluded.
The U.S. Department of Education issued a Feb. 14 letter to school leaders condemning DEI.
“Discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin is illegal and morally reprehensible,” the letter begins, before explicitly critiquing DEI as a means for “smuggling” in discrimination on the basis of race.
“Put simply, educational institutions may neither separate or segregate students based on race, nor distribute benefits or burdens based on race,” the letter continues. “All students are entitled to a school environment free from discrimination.”
Campus Reform has contacted Case Western Reserve University for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
This article was originally published at campusreform.org
