Trump administration threatens to withhold funding from schools with DEI programs

The Trump administration has threatened to withhold federal funding from public schools that have not eliminated diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices, marking another move by the government to enforce Donald Trump’s anti-DEI crackdown.

A memo by the education department sent to state officials nationwide on Thursday requires them to respond within 10 days confirming that schools are complying with the administration’s anti-diversity policies or face losing federal financial assistance.

State education officials must verify that the schools are in compliance with title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits schools that receive federal funds from discrimination based on race, gender, and other protected identities, and the supreme court’s 2023 decision in Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard, which it interprets as banning the practice of race-conscious admissions and policies in higher education.

According to the New York Times, the memo targets funding for schools with high percentages of low-income students, known as title I funding.

Trump signed an executive order in January directing federal officials to develop plans to eliminate federal funds for schools that he said indoctrinate children based on “gender ideology” and “discriminatory equity ideology”.

The education department memo on Thursday did not specify which DEI programs would be targeted, and the administration has struggled to define which initiatives would violate its new policy.

Education secretary Linda McMahon, during her confirmation hearing in February, said she wasn’t certain when asked whether classes on African American history would run afoul of Trump’s order.

“I’m not quite certain, and I’d like to look into it further and get back to you on that,” she told lawmakers at the time.

Last month, the Trump administration targeted dozens of colleges for engaging in what it called “race-exclusionary practices”, after previously warning schools and colleges they could lose federal money over “race-based preferences” in admissions, scholarships or any aspect of student life.

“Federal financial assistance is a privilege, not a right,” Craig Trainor, the acting assistant education secretary for civil rights, said in a statement on Thursday.

“When state education commissioners accept federal funds, they agree to abide by federal anti-discrimination requirements. Unfortunately, we have seen too many schools flout or outright violate these obligations, including by using DEI programs to discriminate against one group of Americans to favor another based on identity characteristics.”