Resources - Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion - Research and Resources - LibGuides at Women in Engineering ProActive Network

Resources for campus Leaders

DEI Design Parameters Under Federal Law for Public IHEs & Federally Funded Private IHEs, Societies, & Entities

Making the Case for Academic Freedom and Institutional Autonomy in a Challenging Political Environment
Over the past several years, there has been a rising trend of policymakers—primarily at the state level—taking
steps to restrict the presentation and discussion of topics such as race, gender, American history, and LGBTQ+
identities. These restrictive actions, sometimes labeled as attempts to ban “divisive concepts,” have been
described by PEN America as “educational gag orders.” This has mostly occurred at the K–12 level, but it is an
issue increasingly affecting colleges and universities as well. These attempts to mandate what can and cannot
be taught and discussed on our campuses are unsettling and dangerous. They represent a potentially serious
threat to the academic freedom and institutional autonomy that make American higher education the envy of
the world.

Editorials

“Academic Freedom Must be Protected at New College of Florida” (Sarasota Tribune) by Esther Barazzone, Chatham University (PA)
“Why Florida’s Public College Presidents Should Resign” (Inside Higher Ed) by Robert Birnbaum, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh (WI)
“Let’s talk, not censor: What colleges and legislators get wrong about free speech” (Baltimore Sun) by José Antonio Bowen, Goucher College (MD).
“We 7 former Florida college presidents say enough is enough” (Tampa Bay Times) by Wilson G. Bradshaw, John C. Cavanaugh, Charles R. Dassance, Lars A. Hafner, Michael V. Martin, Eduardo Padrón, and Dale Whittaker
“The Hills on Which We (Used to) Die” (Inside Higher Ed) by John C. Cavanaugh, Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PA); University of West Florida (FL)
“Gag Laws Limit Religious Liberty” (Outreach) by Dennis H. Holtschneider, C.M., Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities
“How A Campus Interfaith Center Fell to Florida’s Anti-DEI Legislation” (Religion News Service) by Dennis H. Holtschneider, C.M., Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities
“Florida Conservatives Abandon Their Small-Government Roots” (Tampa Bay Times) by A. Lee Fritschler, Dickinson College (PA)
“The Time Is Now” (Inside Higher Education) by R. Barbara Gitenstein, The College of New Jersey (NJ)
“What the Founding Fathers understood about college education” (The Albany Times Union) by Philip A. Glotzbach, Skidmore College (NY)
“College censorship, book bans hurt all Americans” (Staten Island Advance) by Richard Guarasci, Wagner College (NY)
Testimony on HB1446 by Lary Isaak, North Dakota University System (ND)
“Ban the Ban, Not the Book” (Philadelphia Citizen) by Elaine Maimon, Governors State University (IL)
“Retired Presidents Join Campaign To Fight Political Interference With College Campuses” (Forbes) by Michael T. Nietzel, Missouri State University (MO)
“I Was President of Florida’s New College. Then I was Fired.” (Chronicle of Higher Education) by Patricia Okker, New College of Florida (FL)
“America’s Censored Classrooms” (Sun Sentinel) by Eduardo Padrón, Miami Dade College (FL)
“From heavy hand of government to speaker shout downs, free speech in peril on campuses” (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) by Kevin Reilly, University System of Wisconsin (WI)
“A Gaggle of Gags (Not the Funny Kind)” (Trusteeship) by Kevin Reilly, University System of Wisconsin (WI)
“The Fight for Florida’s New College” (Chronicle of Higher Education) by Brian Rosenberg, Macalester College (MN)
“Colleges and learners should decide, not the government” (VTDigger) by Peter Smith, Community College of Vermont (VT); California State University, Monterey Bay (CA).
“Politicians are trying to undercut colleges. Despite the consequences, we must speak up.” (USA Today) by David Warren, Ohio Wesleyan University (OH)
“Universities cannot be bystanders when democracy is imperilled” (Times Higher Education) by John Silvanus Wilson, Morehouse College (GA)
"Why anti-DEI lawsuits are piling up this year," WorkLife, August 20, 2024
"Here Are the Most Common Anti-DEI Legal Cases Right Now -- and What You Need to Know About Them," Inc., August 15, 2024
"The Fight Against DEI Programs Shifts to Medical Care," Wall Street Journal, August 14, 2024
"DEI litigation shows hit to targeted programs in US," The Indiana Lawyer, August 14, 2024
"Does DEI training discriminate against White people? Courts will decide," Washington Post, August 9, 2024
"New litigation tracker allows HR leaders to follow DE&I lawsuits," HR Brew, July 29, 2024
"Conservative Groups Challenge Corporate DEI Initiatives with Recent Success," Corporate Counsel Online, July 30, 2024
Lindsay Frost, "Boards Warned to 'Buckle Up' for Anti-DEI Lawsuits," Agenda, July 22, 2024
Claire Savage, "Conservatives use shooting at Trump rally to attack DEI efforts at Secret Service," ABC News, July 22, 2024
Danielle Douglas-Gabriel, "Many universities are abandoning race-conscious scholarships worth millions," Washington Post, July 9, 2024
Sarah Nassauer, "How Tractor Supply Decided to End DEI, and Fast," Wall Street Journal, June 30, 2024
Julian Mark, "He never saw himself as disadvantaged. Then the government had him write an essay," Washington Post, June 29, 2024
Peter Whoriskey and Julian Mark, “Conservative lawsuits undo diversity programs,” Washington Post, June 27, 2024
Sarah Murray, “Rescuing diversity from the DEI backlash,” Financial Times, June 20, 2024
“Yoshino Explains the Rise of Anti-DEI Litigation,” Bloomberg TV, June 13, 2024
Alexandra Olson, “A grant program for Black women business owners is discriminatory, appeals court rules,” Associated Press, June 3, 2024
Nancy Scola, “How Stephen Miller brought the ‘war on woke’ to small businesses,’ Fast Company, May 22, 2024
Caroline Talbot, “Diversity managers in the US are facing new challenges,” Le Monde, May 18, 2024
Julian Mark, “DEI ‘lives on’ after Supreme Court ruling, but critics see an opening,” Washington Post, April 19, 2024
Simone Foxman, “The Supreme Court Just Complicated Employer Diversity Initiatives,” Bloomberg, April 18, 2024
Robert Draper, “America First Legal, a Trump-Aligned Group, Is Spoiling for a Fight,” New York Times, March 21, 2024
Bridget Hickey, “Industry Firms Water Down DEI Language as Legal Threats Loom,” FundFire, March 7, 2024
Alexandra Olson, “A federal judge has ordered a US minority business agency to serve all races,” Associated Press, March 6, 2024
Simone Foxman, “Business is Booming for DEI Lawyers as Firms Ask ‘What’s Legal?,” Bloomberg, March 5, 2024
Erin Mulvaney, “Minority Business Grants: A New Front in the Legal Battle Over Racial Preferences,” Wall Street Journal, January 31, 2024
Emma Goldberg, “Facing Backlash, Some Corporate Leaders Go ‘Under the Radar’ With D.E.I.,” New York Times, January 22, 2024
Alexandra Olson, Haleluya Hadero, and Anne D’Innocenzio, “As diversity, equity and inclusion comes under legal attack, companies quietly alter their programs,” Associated Press, January 14, 2024
Natalie Runyon, “Key ways to minimize legal risk in the wake of anti-DEI action,” Thomson Reuters, December 7, 2023
Vernā Myers, “The Future of Corporate DEI w/ Kenji Yoshino and David Glasgow,” Sundays with Verna Podcast, December 3, 2023
Julian Mark and Taylor Telford, “Conservative activist sues 2 major law firms over diversity fellowships,” Washington Post, August 23, 2023
Kevin J. Delaney, “How to shore up diversity efforts against attacks,” Charterworks, August 20, 2023
“CityLine: The decline of corporate DEI,” WCVB - Boston, August 2, 2023
Wyatte Grantham-Philips and Geoff Mulvihill, “GOP attorneys general shift the battle over affirmative action to the workplace,” Associated Press, July 14, 2023
Lauren Aratani, “Where now for workplace diversity after court’s affirmative action ruling?” Guardian, July 2, 2023
Evie Liu, “Companies Stick to Workplace Diversity Despite End of Affirmative Action,” Barron’s, June 30, 2023

Resources for Teachers

Inclusive STEM Teaching Project
Our online course is designed to advance ability and awareness for cultivating inclusive STEM learning environments.

Sites to Follow

The Advancing DEI Initiative
The Advancing DEI Initiative is a project of the Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging, committed to making information on the intersection of law and DEI accessible to supporters of DEI.
The Chronicle of Higher Education - Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
The Chronicle is tracking legislation that would prohibit colleges from having diversity, equity, and inclusion offices or staff; ban mandatory diversity training; forbid institutions to use diversity statements in hiring and promotion; or bar colleges from considering race, sex, ethnicity, or national origin in admissions or employment. All four proscriptions were identified in model state legislation proposed last year by the Goldwater Institute and the Manhattan Institute. For more coverage, read the articles in our Assault on DEI package.
PEN America
PEN America is a national leader in fighting educational censorship in both higher ed and K-12. Our signature campaign against educational gag orders — legislative restrictions on the freedom to learn and teach that have swept the country since January 2021 — has generated media coverage in over a hundred publications. We will continue to expand our work to defend students and teachers against legislative infringements on free expression in the classroom.
Inside Higher Ed

LGBTQ+

Invisible Histories
Invisible Histories locates, collects, researches, and creates community-based, educational programming around LGBTQ history in the Deep South. Invisible Histories believes archiving is resistance to oppression and history leads to liberation. In our work, we center joy and community while never erasing the painful and complicated experiences of our folks. We WILL save our stories, one box at a time.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion - Research and Resources: Resources

Resources for campus Leaders

Editorials

Resources for Teachers

Sites to Follow

LGBTQ+