Ohio State University announced Thursday it will close its Office of Diversity and Inclusion and modify scholarship programs geared toward diverse student
In a campus-wide message, Ohio State President Ted Carter outlined several immediate changes in response to what he described as "federal threats to withdraw funding if DEI programs continued." These changes include discontinuing the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, ending programming under Student Life's Center for Belonging and Social Change, and renaming the Office of Institutional Equity to the Office of Civil Rights Compliance.
The university's Office of Diversity and Inclusion, which oversaw the Black Cultural Center, Bell National Resource Center on the African American Male, Women's Center, and various programs supporting minority students, will cease operations effective immediately. The Morrill Scholarship Program and Young Scholars Program will be transferred to the Office of Academic Affairs with modified eligibility requirements.
The Morrill Scholarship has historically been awarded to students committed to diversity-based leadership, while the Young Scholars Program serves first-generation, low-income underrepresented students. Carter assured that current student scholarships and financial aid will not be affected by these changes.
"These are difficult conversations, as we knew they would be. All of higher education is facing a challenging environment," Carter added. "Nonetheless, I continue to believe that the best course for our university is to take actions proactively so that we can manage this new landscape in ways that best uphold the values of excellence, access and opportunity that we hold dear."
The university confirmed that 16 positions will be eliminated as a result of these changes. Officials stated they will work with affected employees to find alternative employment opportunities within the institution where possible.
Carter cited a memo from President Donald J. Trump's administration with a Friday deadline to eliminate diversity programs, as well as Ohio's Senate Bill 1, which would ban DEI initiatives on college campuses and has already passed in the state Senate.
"The Attorney General of Ohio – our statutory counsel – has advised us that his office concurs with the federal government's position regarding the use of race in educational activities," Carter said.
The decision has drawn mixed reactions from the campus community. Ohio State University College Republicans expressed "full support" for the changes, stating that "providing opportunities and benefits strictly on the basis of race is never acceptable."
Meanwhile, students like political science junior Daizhon Cox lamented the development, calling it "a sad day for minorities in general and a sad day for Ohio State." Second-year student Sabrina Estevez had previously warned that such policies could have far-reaching consequences, stating: "If S.B. 1 succeeds in Ohio, it will embolden politicians everywhere to kill higher education under the guise of 'neutrality.' This is a warning: the fight for academic freedom isn't just Ohio's fight, it's America's fight."
The Office of Diversity and Inclusion and the Center for Belonging and Social Change will both be discontinued starting February 28, according to university officials.
