GOP lawmaker cheers closure of University of Wyoming's DEI office: 'Artificial and biased'
LARAMIE, Wyo. (TND) — Rep. Harriet Hageman, R-Wyo., on Tuesday cheered the University of Wyoming’s (UW) decision to close its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) office in a statement to The National Desk (TND).
University officials made the announcement Friday after a “working group” appointed by President Ed Seidel recommended changes to the school’s diversity approach. Seidel formed the group after the state legislature withheld $1.73 million from the school’s budget and noted it would not provide state dollars for DEI efforts.
The school will eliminate its DEI office and drop diversity statements as a required job application material, according to the announcement. Employee evaluations will also no longer involve DEI practices.
“We received a strong message from the state’s elected officials to change our approach to DEI issues,” Seibel 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.”
Some services which fell under the DEI office, such as legally required religious and disability accommodations, will be transitioned to other departments at the school. The Office of the Provost will create a new provost position to assist with this transition.
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Rep. Hageman told TND the decision will help students succeed in the long term.
“The ‘woke’ nonsense that is DEI has been a failure wherever it has been implemented,” she said. “It doesn’t produce smarter students or prepare them for a lifetime of success, nor does it benefit the University of Wyoming. Merit should be the determining factor in admissions, grading, and athletics, not the artificial and biased standards of DEI.”The move by UW follows similar actions by the University of North Carolina and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). UNC voted Monday to divert $2.3 million in DEI initiatives to “public safety” causes. MIT recently dropped required diversity statements as part of its job application process, saying such requirements “don’t work.”
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