While a last-minute language disagreement killed the 2024 General Assembly’s primary anti-DEI legislation, it may come back to life next year.

Lawmakers on Tuesday probed a few of Kentucky’s higher education institutions about diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.

Why are lawmakers concerned about DEI?

Recently, conservative politicians have raised concerns about DEI.

Generally, they worry that those who do not ascribe to certain ideologies on race, sex and gender in America – for example, the existence of systemic racism – will be discriminated against for refusing to do so.

In the 2024 General Assembly, several Republicans filed legislation to limit DEI initiatives. Sen. Mike Wilson, R-Bowling Green, filed a bill banning colleges and universities from penalizing current or prospective student and employees based on their adherence or non-adherence to certain so-called “divisive” or “discriminatory concepts.”

Rep. Jennifer Decker, R-Waddy, filed another bill essentially eliminating DEI offices, positions and initiatives.

In the final days of session, Decker’s bill language was added to Wilson’s bill, and the Republican caucus could not resolve its differences in time to get the votes.

However, a smaller change made it through.

Part of a 2024 law removed the word “minority” from one of Kentucky’s public college and university system’s statutorily required goals: “closing achievement gaps by increasing the number of credentials and degrees earned by low-income students, underprepared students and underrepresented minority students.”

It called for a working group to come up with a new definition for “underrepresented students” during the interim.

It also said the Council on Postsecondary Education, which oversees the state’s universities and the Kentucky Community and Technical College System, can no longer use any “race-based metrics or targets” in its performance models.

Due to a 1992 state law, CPE can deny approval of new academic programs at Kentucky’s higher education institutions if they do not meet certain equal educational opportunity goals.

Travis Powell, CPE vice president and general counsel, said they are looking to adjust elements of their performance funding model, which has historically focused on the retention and graduation rates of underrepresented minorities and low-income students, as well as the diversity of faculty and staff.

CPE is considering different metrics, like first generation, differently abled and nontraditional adult students, he said.

“We’re in a different environment here in 2024,” Powell said. “We will continue to evolve, but at the end of the day, we just want to make sure the students that need the help get the support they need in order to be successful.”

DEI criticism

Dr. Timothy Minella, a senior fellow at the Goldwater Institute and former UK faculty member, testified to share his criticisms on DEI initiatives.

While he acknowledged CPE’s mandate to promote equal education opportunity, he said “they have substituted that out for diversity, equity, inclusion and racial discrimination.”

Minella took issue with CPE’s targets, goals for admission and retention of underrepresented minorities and low-income students. He said they amounted to quotas, and are unconstitutional after the Supreme Court struck down race-conscious admissions last year.

He recommended that the legislature abolish “DEI bureaucracy” and adopt the Freedom from Indoctrination Act, which removes DEI concepts from classes that are a condition of graduation. Minella said for students, such material is “academically unserious” that “add(s) little or nothing to their education.”

University input

Northern Kentucky University President Dr. Cady Short-Thompson said they’ve seen progress in retention and graduation rates of underrepresented minorities while spending just 0.34% of their budget on DEI initiatives.

She said DEI is not just about educating students; it’s about making them feel comfortable to stay at NKU. Short-Thompson added that exposure to diversity benefits students entering a global economy where they’ll have to interact with people across the world.

While NKU has no institutionally funded scholarships based on DEI attributes, no bias incident reporting team or diversity statements that are conditions of employment and enrollment, it has 45 external academic program accreditations that require some form of DEI education.

Education is one example.

“Our student teachers will go out and teach students from varying backgrounds, and they are required under their accrediting body to be able to be prepared to teach different populations of students,” Short-Thompson said.

In contrast, Morehead State University President Dr. Jay Morgan said that at times, it can be difficult to meet CPE’s diversity plan targets as well as serve its majority low-income student population.

The interim education committee will continue its conversation at its September meeting.