Since before President Trump took office, legal experts have suggested that the administration could use the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) to advance the president’s goal of eliminating DEI policies at educational institutions. In February 2025, OCR issued a “Dear Colleague” letter (DCL) addressing race discrimination, DEI, and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. DCLs are meant to inform educational institutions about OCR’s interpretation of federal civil rights law and how it will investigate violations. The February 2025 DCL stands as the Trump Education Department’s first direct challenge to DEI programming in higher education.
Free Inquiry and Expression: From Principles to Educational Practice
Hundreds of colleges and universities have adopted free expression and institutional speech documents from the University of Chicago. In 1899, the University of Chicago faculty unanimously resolved that complete freedom
Leila Brammer
September 7, 2026
