I am writing to alert you to an extremely important communication from Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor. At 9 p.m. on Friday, February 14, the Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released a “Dear Colleague Letter” that cements its concerns around diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). I encourage you to read it in full. This letter comes on the heels of Executive Order 14173, which was released on January 21 and prohibits any race- and sex-based preferences, mandates, policies, programs and activities tied to DEI. 

Trainor’s letter indicates that OCR will enforce civil rights statutes as prohibiting “race in decisions pertaining to admissions, hiring, promotion, compensation, financial aid, scholarships, prizes, administrative support, discipline, housing, graduation ceremonies, and all other aspects of student, academic, and campus life.” Trainor continues, “Put simply, educational institutions may neither separate or segregate students based on race, nor distribute benefits or burdens based on race.” 

Provost Kristi Nelson and I are assessing the impact on our university and meeting with all deans and vice presidents this week to provide specific guidance and action steps. We ask for your patience and understanding as we work through how best to comply with this confluence of complex, fast-moving legal and policy changes at various levels of government. 

We greatly appreciate all that you do to ensure the success of our university. We remain committed to fostering a vibrant environment for inquiry, discovery and learning. 

Sincerely, 

Neville G. Pinto