Portland State University’s Global Diversity & Inclusion (GDI) Vice President, Ame Lambert, ensures that no changes will need to be made to comply with the ban.
“We have reviewed our institutional polices and practices, scholarships, programming…” said Lambert in an interview with PSU Vanguard. “We’ve reviewed all of that to ensure we are compliant with the law.”
On Jan. 22, 2025, the Trump administration issued an executive order to ban Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives in all federal institutions, citing it as racial discrimination. The order specifically calls to remove all public-facing communication using DEI-related terminology, which caused confusion amongst higher education officials on how exactly this would affect universities.
College campuses nationwide received a “Dear Colleague” letter on February 14, 2025, informing schools that they have 14 days from the letter’s publication to terminate all use of “racial preferences” in things like admissions, scholarships, hiring and other institutional facets.
Many universities began scrubbing all use of DEI-related language across campus organizations. Failure to comply with these restrictions would result in loss of federal funding.
Clarifications were made to the letter via a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document issued by the Department of Education on Feb. 28, 2025. Introducing language that connects the ban on DEI to be part of the Trump administration’s interpretation of Title VI, which prohibits discrimination based on race in programs receiving federal funding. Criteria for what is considered non-compliant are elaborated upon but still remain vague and unspecified. The FAQ also clarifies that institutions won’t immediately lose funding based on a lack of compliance but will be put under investigation.
At the moment of publication, PSU hasn’t changed its diversity initiatives. On-campus facets like multicultural centers and race studies programs remain intact, and all public-facing university communication still contains language related to DEI.
PSU’s GDI department recently hosted a celebration for the conclusion of their Time to Act initiative, a three-year plan to improve equity and racial justice on campus.
“We do know that people are concerned, but I just want to confirm to our students that they’re not by themselves and we have their backs,” Lambert said.
