Following up on my previous posts:

• New York Times, The University Of Michigan Doubled Down on DEI. What Went Wrong? (Oct. 17, 2024)
• New York Times, University Of Michigan Weighs Changes To Its Diversity Program (Dec. 5, 2024)

Chronicle of Higher Education, U. of Michigan Bans Use of Diversity Statements, Recommits to Broader DEI Goals:

The University of Michigan at Ann Arbor will no longer solicit diversity statements in faculty hiring, promotion, and tenure decisions, the provost, Laurie K. McCauley, announced on Thursday.

The announcement, in an internal publication for faculty and staff, drew heated responses on a frigid day when protesters were preparing to assemble outside President Santa J. Ono’s house to demand that the university uphold its diversity commitments. Reports had been circulating that the Board of Regents was likely to announce cuts in Michigan’s expansive diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. During a board meeting Thursday, the regents sought to reassure the university community that no such cuts were in the works.

“There’s not a person at the table who plans on making cuts” to any of the programs a speaker cited as important, one regent, Michael J. Behm, said.

Still, the elimination of diversity statements was a significant change for a university that has been one of the nation’s leading proponents of a strategy aimed at attracting more faculty members of color. It’s also significant because the university is located in a state where there have been no recent significant legislative efforts to ban racial- and gender-based initiatives to fight discrimination and recruit and retain students and faculty of color.

Given the priorities of the incoming administration in Washington, the university will have “hard decisions” to make, Chris Kolb, vice president for government relations, told the regents.

“I have been told pretty bluntly that Congress — this administration — will use whatever tools they have to have us yield to what they want us to do,” he said. “DEI is one of those things they believe should be eliminated from higher education. They will use whatever tools they have, including cutting off finances, to make that happen.” Without taking anyone’s eyes off the university’s mission, Kolb said, “We may have to trim sails. We may have to tack left. We may have to tack right.”

• Michigan Daily, UMich Eliminates Diversity Statements in Faculty Hiring, Promotion and Tenure
• Michigan Public, U of M Regents Say They Support Diversity, Even as the School Drops DEI Statements
• National Review, The University of Michigan’s Shift on DEI Is Only a Start

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