Reality Check is a Fresno Bee series holding those in power to account and shining a light on their decisions. Have a tip? Email tips@fresnobee.com.
When Fresno Unified renamed its diversity, equity and inclusion department in September, district officials said it wasn’t in response to the Trump administration’s DEI crackdown. But emails obtained by The Bee indicate officials were at least partially worried they’d lose federal funding if they didn’t remove public references to DEI efforts.
In recent months, the district reconfigured its chief of DEI position into a new title of associate superintendent of family and student services role. The district also rebranded its A4 initiative aimed at boosting Black student achievement. No longer is the program referred to as African American Academic Acceleration. Rather, its new official name is Advancing Academic Acceleration and Achievement.
District officials have said the changes and rebrands were part of Superintendent Misty Her’s “goals and guardrails” plan to improve student achievement across the district. But email correspondence between district officials illustrate the federal government’s chilling effect on educational institutions’ efforts to promote diversity, equity and inclusion in classrooms and workplaces.
As early as February, one month after Trump took office, Fresno Unified officials were exploring changes that removed public-facing references to DEI efforts.
In one email chain, Her asked Philip Neufeld, the district’s executive officer of information technology, if other institutions had changed the names of their equity-related departments, and if they were able to still maintain their commitments to diversity.
“Have you heard of or seen where other districts, universities have made changes to the titles (DEI, AA, Latinx..) but still provide services? How are they doing besides just the title changes?” Her wrote.
Neufeld responded with examples of how other institutions — including Harvard, Texas A&M and the University of California system — have implemented changes to align with federal, anti-DEI mandates.
He also expressed concerns over the uncertainty of the impact an Office for Civil Rights complaint would have on the district.
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has historically enforced anti-discrimination laws that ensure equitable educational opportunities to students of color. Under the Trump administration, the agency has also been tasked with investigating complaints of discrimination “as a result of a diversity, equity, and inclusion policy, program, or practice in a publicly funded K–12 school, college, or university.”
“The big question is will an OCR complaint be able to block or cancel all related federal funding regardless of whether the program, initiative, or curriculum is within the scope of the OCR complaint,” Neufeld wrote to Her.
“Again, I don’t think curriculum is at risk given the existing constitutional and legal precedent. And I don’t think that OCR complaints could claw back or restrict funding except for the program within the scope of the OCR complaint. However, these are not normal times :(,” Neufeld said in the email thread, which he ended with a sad face emoji.
Fresno Unified officials have walked a tightrope in their public remarks regarding DEI changes.
Carlos Castillo, former head of the DEI department and current chief of academics, told The Bee in September that the renaming was part of a larger reorganization within the district, adding that the department’s “core mission and efforts” remain unchanged.
Trustees Elizabeth Jonasson Rosas and Andy Levine said the rebranding stemmed from a restructuring focused on student achievement as opposed to pressure from the federal government.
Fresno Unified held a community forum last week explaining the decision to rename its A4 department. District leaders said the changes to the A4 program are meant to align with Fresno Unified’s broader student achievement plan. They reaffirmed the district’s DEI commitments to attendees at the community forum.
Mark Harris, an attorney for the district, discussed federal pressures head-on, including the impact of from one of Trump’s executive orders, “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling.”
“We’re not making stuff up when we’re talking about how serious you should take these challenges facing Fresno Unified. If you’re in that (DEI) camp, the administration’s coming after you. And the first thing that happened relative to coming after this district was this lawsuit,” he said, referring to the now-dismissed case brought against Fresno Unified by the Californians for Equal Rights Foundation.