Trump administration concedes loss in anti-DEI crusade against nation’s schools, colleges

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration has dropped its appeal of a federal court ruling that blocked its campaign against diversity, equity, and inclusion in the nation’s schools and colleges. The administration had threatened to withhold federal funds from schools that didn’t comply.

The U.S. Department of Education, in a court filing Wednesday, moved to dismiss its appeal. That leaves in place a federal judge’s August decision finding that the anti-DEI effort violated the First Amendment and federal procedural rules.

The dispute centered on federal guidance telling schools and colleges they would lose federal money if they kept a wide range of practices that the Republican administration labeled as diversity, equity and inclusion. Oregon’s Eugene school district was among the small number of entities, led by the American Federation of Teachers, that sued to overture that threat.

The department did not immediately comment.

Democracy Forward, a legal advocacy firm representing the plaintiffs, said the dismissal was “a welcome relief and a meaningful win for public education.”

“Today’s dismissal confirms what the data shows: government attorneys are having an increasingly difficult time defending the lawlessness of the president and his cabinet,” said Skye Perryman, the group’s president and CEO.

The department sent the anti-DEI warning in a “Dear Colleague Letter” to schools last February.

The memo said race could not be considered in decisions involving college admissions, hiring, scholarships and “all other aspects of student, academic, and campus life.” It said efforts to increase diversity had led to discrimination against white and Asian American students.

The department later asked K-12 schools to certify they did not practice DEI, again threatening to cut federal funding.

Within days, in April of 2025, Oregon state schools chief Charlene Williams declared the state’s schools would not comply.

Both documents were struck down by U.S. District Judge Stephanie Gallagher in Maryland. In her ruling, she said the guidance stifled teachers’ free speech, “causing millions of educators to reasonably fear that their lawful, and even beneficial, speech might cause them or their schools to be punished.”

The challenge was filed by the American Federation of Teachers, the Eugene school district and the American Sociological Association.