Utah Republicans Advance Bill That Would Eliminate DEI Policies in Public Universities
“We believe campuses should embrace viewpoint diversity, academic freedom, freedom of expression and institutional political neutrality”
The tide really seems to be turning on this issue. It’s not happening quickly but it is happening.
The College Fix reports:
Sweeping Utah bill to ban DEI advances in Republican-controlled statehouse
A Republican-backed bill to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion policies in Utah public universities and government agencies recently passed the House and is before the Senate.
Utah state Rep. Katy Hall and state Sen. Keith Grover introduced the bill earlier this month to bar the state’s public universities from requiring adherence to a specific ideology as a condition for graduation or employment.
The Utah House voted along party lines last week 58-14 to recommend the bill forward.
If approved, students or job applicants would no longer be required to pass an “ideological litmus test” by submitting materials or attending training sessions that align with certain ideologies.
Universities in Utah would also need to provide annual training on freedom of speech, develop strategies, including inviting speakers, to promote viewpoint diversity, and hire a third party to conduct campus-wide surveys assessing the level of comfort among students, faculty members, and staff in freely expressing their opinions.
Furthermore, the bill requires universities to replace DEI programs with the more general “Student Success Offices,” which “provide support, guidance and resources that equip all students,” according to a statement released by the two Utah lawmakers.
Backers of the Equal Opportunity Initiatives bill say it is aimed at ensuring that higher education institutions in Utah remain “neutral on political issues” and “a free marketplace of ideas.”
“We believe campuses should embrace viewpoint diversity, academic freedom, freedom of expression and institutional political neutrality,” Sen. Grover stated in a news release.
Lucy Atwood, chairwoman of the conservative campus group Young Americans for Freedom at the University of Utah, told The College Fix via email she has “experienced first-hand the effect political bias in institutions can have, which has affected our free speech rights, and opportunities.”
Atwood called the bill “an extraordinary triumph for free speech, university neutrality, and equal opportunities for all.”
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