Anna Gorman, Campus Carrier news editor

Amidst a slew of executive orders and changes, President Donald Trump has made a ban on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programs in schools, which took effect Friday. Federally funded schools were given 14 days to end DEI and race-based programs, according to the Department of Education.

According to U.S. News and World Report, employers who do not comply may face liability for utilizing and promoting DEI programs. Scholarships, funding and multicultural organizations risk being cut from colleges that do not comply, as well.

On Feb. 14, a “Dear Colleague” letter was issued to universities from the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, which encouraged colleges and institutions to support Trump’s anti-DEI bill, and to be fully compliant in canceling DEI programs and initiatives within 14 days. In response, Rutgers University Center for Minority Serving Institutions in New Jersey canceled its programs associated with Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in New York canceled 12 student affinity groups related to gender, race, ethnicity and sexuality.

For other colleges, the challenge lies in avoiding drawing attention from the government without canceling key programs and services for underrepresented students and faculty. Currently, most colleges are slowly removing language about race and DEI buzzwords from the names of programs as a result of the Dear Colleague letter, according to Inside Higher Ed. The University of Cincinnati, Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Alaska all did so, removing words such as “diversity” and “inclusion” from their websites and other digital platforms.

Berry’s Office of Diversity was renamed to the Office of Belonging and Community Engagement at the beginning of fall semester, to place more emphasis on the college’s overall message of supporting the community and being a “Good Neighbor.” Though this change was not in connection to Trump’s executive orders, the pages related to the former Department of Diversity and Inclusion – as well as the Student Diversity Initiatives, which is another former office related to diversity – are all down on the Berry website, and the links lead to a 404-error page.

Though Berry has not released a statement addressing the fate of its DEI-related programs, other universities are currently scrubbing their websites and changing programs, though many are remaining the same, watching how far of a legal reach Trump’s orders have. Princeton University’s president urged the community to “keep calm and carry on” until the legal status of the orders becomes clear, while Ithaca College, for example, a private institute in New York, maintains their commitment to keeping DEI programs and initiatives available for students, according to the Ithaca College Center for Career Exploration and Development.

There is still hope, however, as imposing a federal penalty on schools for offering DEI programs is not easy, according to AP News. The Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights had fewer than 600 employees before the Trump administration began cutting staff, while the U.S. has more than 18,000 school districts and 6,000 colleges. With this in mind, it can take years to terminate a school’s federal funding when a school faces an investigation.

Some schools are also resisting the ban entirely, according to AP News. Oregon State University has come out with a statement that it is determined to continue its programs and curricula, and that they are fully compliant with all state and federal laws, including the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

As of February, 119 bills have been introduced in 29 states to curtail DEI initiatives at public colleges, according to U.S. News and World Report. Legislation against DEI has passed in 12 states so far, not including Georgia. 

Trump’s executive orders continue to be a source of anxiety among the Berry community, as the fate of DEI programs initiatives offered at the school is still up in the air. The Berry community prides itself on maintaining its mission statement and fostering Good Neighbor practices in its students, and these programs are a staple of that mission.

Dean of Students Lindsey Taylor and Associate Dean of Students Lindsay Norman declined to comment.