(The Center Square) — In a forceful pushback, New York education officials are defying the Trump administration’s directive to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs in public schools.
In a letter to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights, New York Schools Counsel and Deputy Commissioner Daniel Morton-Bentley said the state will not comply with an order from President Donald Trump to certify that school districts are eliminating DEI initiatives. The state will not send any “further certification” of compliance with federal law, the letter stated.
“We understand that the current administration seeks to censor anything it deems ‘diversity, equity and inclusion,'” he wrote. “But there are no federal or State laws prohibiting the principles of DEI.”
Morton-Bentley said the Trump administration’s stance is an “abrupt shift” from former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos — who served during Trump’s first presidency — who largely supported DEI programs.
“DeVos also opined that embracing diversity and inclusion are ‘key elements for success for building strong teams,'” he wrote. “USDOE has provided no explanation for how and why it changed positions.”
The DOE’s civil rights office sent a letter to states on April 3, giving education officials 10 days to guarantee that no public schools in their states have DEI programs the Trump administration deems illegal — or lose billions of dollars in federal education funding.
The federal agency cited a landmark 2023 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that banned race-based affirmative action in college admissions, arguing that any school DEI program used to “advantage one’s race over another” violates federal Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.
The DEI directive from the Department of Education is the latest development in a series of Trump administration policy initiatives seeking to stamp out efforts to address racism and inequity in schools.
Trump signed an executive order in January threatening to withhold federal funding from schools over “radical indoctrination” in classrooms. The Office of Civil Rights in the U.S. Education Department told districts they could be subject to investigation for any policies that consider race or proxies for race.
The order said under DEI policies, “innocent children are compelled to adopt identities as either victims or oppressors solely based on their skin color and other immutable characteristics.” In contrast, others are “made to question whether they were born in the wrong body and whether to view their parents and their reality as enemies to be blamed.”
“These practices not only erode critical thinking but also sow division, confusion, and distrust, which undermine the very foundations of personal identity and family unity,” Trump wrote in the order.
New York schools receive roughly $2 billion a year—or 5% of the annual education budget—from the federal government, including $700 million in Title I funds for schools with high poverty rates.
The Department of Education did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
