LARAMIE, Wyo. — The University of Wyoming will eliminate its Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, the university announced last month.
The university also announced job candidates will no longer need to submit statements regarding diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and the university will no longer evaluate employees’ commitment to DEI in annual performance evaluations.
University of Wyoming (UW) President Ed Seidel announced the changes, which were supported by a vote of the UW board of trustees, after a review of a report created by a working group.
Seidel appointed the working group in response to legislative action that removed $1.73 million from the university's upcoming budget. A Wyoming legislative budget footnote also directed that no state dollars could be spent on the university's DEI office, effective July 1.
"We received a strong message from the state’s elected officials to change our approach to DEI issues," Seidel said. "At the same time, we have heard from our community that many of the services that might have incorrectly been categorized under DEI are important for the success of our students, faculty and staff. These initial steps are a good-faith effort on the part of the university to respond to legislative action while maintaining essential services."
The university said in a news release that the school remains "committed to maintaining services to students that, in some cases, have existed for decades."
Duties that have been under the UW DEI office, including federal Title VI compliance, support for religious accommodations and Americans with Disabilities Act coordination, will be reassigned to other departments, the university said.
"While very few of our programs and activities can be construed as advocating or promoting preferential treatment, the working group did find some areas warranting further consideration," Seidel said. "We will take a deeper look in these areas and consider additional changes."
"We understand these changes are difficult for some people to accept, just as there are some people who will see the changes as insufficient,” Seidel said. "What I can say is that we are moving forward the best we can to meet the expectations of elected officials and the people of Wyoming and continue serving our students and communities."
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