One of President Trump’s first actions upon taking office was to issue an executive order protecting civil rights by terminating discriminatory diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies in the federal government. This directive includes organizations receiving federal tax dollars. Virginia colleges and universities have indicated they are falling in line with the directive—announcing the elimination of DEI offices—but are they truly ending racist DEI practices?
Media outlets across the state and nation claim DEI is dead in Virginia colleges and universities. Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) even declared “Discriminatory DEI policies are being dismantled across Virginia’s colleges and universities.” Yet our research tells a different story—some schools just want it to appear they’ve abolished DEI.
Virginia Tech (VT) President Timothy Sands—a Berkeley-trained educator—spoke to students and staff on the topic of DEI on April 4th. Sands claimed the Trump DEI directives are based on interpretations of the law, not the law itself, and that views have shifted due to political climate. He also said, “We want our students to be politically active and engaged” and would love to hear “if there is something we can do to facilitate that engagement.” Sands seemed to be using his position as the college President to encourage students to become activists against the executive order.
“Progressive” university leaders clearly don’t want to comply.
In March, the VT Board of Visitors passed a resolution ensuring the school adheres to civil rights laws against discrimination and dissolving the Office of Inclusive Strategy and Excellence in compliance with the Trump order. President Sands said publicly that he doesn’t like the resolution passed by the Board of Visitors.
In 2023, VT required incoming students to complete a racist DEI training module prior to admission. It taught students they were either oppressors or oppressed depending on their race or privileged status. “Privileged groups typically have power over oppressed groups, “the training instructed, and “even if you think you don’t personally have power, you may still be participating in structural systems of power where you receive advantages.” Students also had to complete an exercise to answer questions about how to spot “privilege.”
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Author: Faith Novak
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