{"id":2178819,"date":"2024-02-17T08:20:02","date_gmt":"2024-02-17T13:20:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/texas-universities-implement-dei-under-the-table-after-statewide-ban\/"},"modified":"2024-02-17T08:25:23","modified_gmt":"2024-02-17T13:25:23","slug":"texas-universities-implement-dei-under-the-table-after-statewide-ban","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/texas-universities-implement-dei-under-the-table-after-statewide-ban\/","title":{"rendered":"Texas universities secretly implement diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) measures despite a statewide ban"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftexas-universities-implement-dei-under-the-table-after-statewide-ban%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2178819&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>Texas Public Universities Find Creative Ways to Maintain DEI\u2062 Initiatives Despite Statewide Ban<\/h2>\n<p>Officials at Texas public universities are quietly working to \u2063implement diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs after a statewide ban on the ideology took effect on January 1, according to\u2064 recently released hidden camera footage. The undercover video, captured by investigators from Accuracy in Media, reveals employees from multiple \u200dTexas universities admitting to finding &#8220;creative&#8221; ways to continue their DEI initiatives while technically\u2063 complying with the ban.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;We&#8217;re not allowed to say &#8216;DEI&#8217; anymore,&#8221; revealed Rachel \u200dBall, assistant\u200d director \u2063for academic advising at Texas A&#038;M at Galveston. &#8220;The new law that just started, so I think they&#8217;re calling \u2064it \u2014 I forget what the stupid title is now, but yeah, it pretty much is,\u2064 yeah. So, it&#8217;s to represent \u2064all \u200bof the DEI\u2062 work \u2063that we do on this campus.\u200c They \u2064just rebranded, so we&#8217;re still doing the same work. We\u200d just can&#8217;t call it that.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>The videos confirm previous reporting \u2064by the Washington Examiner, which stated that Texas\u2064 schools were\u2062 simply rebranding their DEI offices while keeping the ideology alive. Accuracy in \u2062Media conducted investigations at 24 campuses across Texas to gain inside perspectives on how schools \u200bwere \u200dresponding to\u200b the ban.<\/p>\n<p>When asked if \u2063there was still a\u2064 way to\u2064 continue\u2064 the DEI work under the new Texas law, Tarecka Payne, the University of Texas \u2063at Tyler&#8217;s director\u2064 of\u200b student belonging, responded, &#8220;No, you can still do it. You just \u200dhave to be creative. &#8230; We carry on.\u2062 We do the work. I plot and plan.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h3>Video Exposes\u2064 Texas University Employees&#8217; Strategies to Defy Ban<\/h3>\n<p>The undercover\u2064 video footage\u200c released by\u2062 Accuracy in Media shows Texas university employees \u2063discussing their approach to DEI initiatives after the statewide ban. However,\u2064 after \u2063reviewing \u200cthe video, Beverley Golden, UT Tyler&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/byu-rooting-out-racism-task-force-calls-for-race-conscious-religious-curriculum-admissions-standards\/\" title=\"BYU \u2018Rooting Out Racism\u2019 Task Force Calls For \u2018Race-Conscious\u2019 Religious Curriculum, Admissions Standards\">associate vice president<\/a>\u2063 for strategic\u200b communications media relations, stated that an employee had been \u2063placed on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/kenosha-wis-under-emergency-declaration-ahead-of-decision-in-jacob-blake-case\/\" title=\"Kenosha, Wis. under emergency declaration ahead of decision in Jacob Blake case\">administrative leave pending<\/a> an investigation. Golden emphasized that the university fully complies with all state \u200dand federal laws, regardless \u200bof what \u200bwas portrayed in the video.<\/p>\n<p>Kevin Eltife, chairman of \u2064the UT System Board of \u200bRegents, added, &#8220;If\u2062 and when we verify any\u2063 noncompliance with state law, the UT System will ensure accountability. The consequences for violations are clear, and under no circumstances \u200bwill we allow UT institutions to jeopardize state funding that collectively educates more than 250,000\u2062 students at our institutions.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Further confirming the undercover DEI push in Texas\u200d was Marcus Brown, Tarleton State University academic coordinator, who agreed that his school could still\u2064 continue DEI initiatives under a different name, jokingly adding, &#8220;I&#8217;m not supposed to say that&#8230; So, no&#8230;&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Kevin Nguyen, University of Houston associate director of student \u2064advocacy, described the\u2062 university&#8217;s response as &#8220;DEI lite, very lite.&#8221; Nguyen explained that\u200c his office can promote the \u200bideology \u200cthrough student groups,\u2064 as long as the DEI initiatives are not officially associated with the\u200c office.<\/p>\n<p>Adam Guillette, president of Accuracy in Media,\u2063 stated, &#8220;Our investigation revealed\u200d that while\u200b some public colleges and universities in Texas are following the new law prohibiting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion \u2064programs, many school officials have found ways to \u200ccircumvent it. DEI programs are a cancer that must be rooted out of our institutions, and that will require holding the radical\u2063 administrators \u200cpushing this poisonous ideology \u200daccountable.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Many \u200bTexas schools have found loopholes in the state ban by using different terms to achieve the same\u2064 underlying ideology of \u200cDEI. One commonly used \u2062term is &#8220;belonging.&#8221; Joe Posada-Triana, \u200ddirector of underserved students \u200cat the\u2062 University of North Texas at Dallas, confirmed that the same DEI work can continue under the new banner of &#8220;belonging.&#8221; He explained that the\u200c diversity \u2064and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/bidens-pick-for-joint-chiefs-chair-made-diversity-and-inclusion-focal-points-in-air-force-personnel-decisions\/\" title=\"Biden's Joint Chiefs Chair nominee prioritized diversity and inclusion in Air Force personnel choices.\">inclusion task force<\/a> at his school \u2064has simply been rebranded as the &#8220;sense\u200b of belonging task force.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Edward Kosowski, \u200cdirector of integrated communications at UNT Dallas, clarified that his school is compliant with the new law and\u200c has never had\u200d a DEI\u200c office. Texas Tech now characterizes its DEI initiatives as\u2063 &#8220;campus access and engagement,&#8221; with Jess Sanchez, a student success specialist, explaining that most of the DEI work is \u2064continuing under the new department.<\/p>\n<p>Officials from Texas \u2063Tech emphasized their commitment to abide by both the\u2063 letter and spirit of the law,\u2064 stating\u2063 that \u200bthe statements made by employees in the video are &#8220;inaccurate and \u2064inconsistent.&#8221; They further stated \u2063that the university will not\u200b engage in activities\u2063 that violate state or federal law.<\/p>\n<p>Some schools responded to the video by pointing out \u200cthe secret\u200b nature of the recordings. Texas A&#038;M\u200c University System spokesman Jim\u2063 Suydam stated that the network takes the implementation of the \u200cDEI ban seriously and has established procedures to\u200b ensure \u200dfull compliance with state\u200d law.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/texas-public-universities-quietly-implementing-diversity-equity-inclusion-programs-despite-statewide-ban\">Click\u2063 here<\/a> to read \u2064more from the Washington Examiner.<\/p>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> How are Texas universities finding\u200d loopholes to continue\u2064 their DEI initiatives despite \u2062the statewide ban?<\/h2>\n<p><span>  Ducation, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, many \u200care finding creative loopholes to continue their work. Undercover footage\u2063 captured\u200d by Accuracy \u2064in Media \u200dshows\u2063 university employees discussing their strategies to defy the statewide ban on DEI programs. The videos confirm previous reporting by\u2062 the Washington Examiner, which stated that Texas \u200dschools were rebranding their \u2064DEI offices while keeping the ideology alive.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel Ball, assistant director for academic advising at Texas A&#038;M at \u200dGalveston,\u200d revealed that they are\u200c no longer allowed to say &#8220;DEI&#8221; and that they have renamed their \u200cinitiatives to comply\u2062 with the \u200bban. However, she admitted that they are still doing the same work, just \u200dunder a different name. \u200cTarecka Payne, the \u200bUniversity of Texas\u2063 at Tyler&#8217;s director of student belonging, also shared that they \u2064can still continue their DEI work, but they have to be creative and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/democrats-at-odds-over-medicare-expansions-drug-pricing-as-they-race-for-a-deal\/\" title=\"Democrats At Odds Over Medicare Expansions, Drug Pricing As They Race For A Deal\">find alternative ways<\/a> to do it.<\/p>\n<p>The undercover \u2063video \u2064footage released by Accuracy in Media shows Texas \u200buniversity employees discussing\u2064 their approach\u200d to DEI\u2063 initiatives despite the ban. However, after reviewing the video, the \u2063University of Texas at Tyler placed an employee on administrative leave pending an investigation. \u2062They emphasized that the university\u2063 fully complies with all state and federal\u2063 laws.<\/p>\n<p>Kevin Eltife, chairman of the UT System Board of Regents, \u200dstated that if \u200cthere is\u2063 any\u2063 noncompliance with state law,\u200b the UT System will \u2063ensure accountability. The consequences for violations are clear, \u2063and \u200cthey will not allow institutions to jeopardize state funding.<\/p>\n<p>Marcus Brown, an academic coordinator at Tarleton State University, confirmed\u200d the undercover DEI \u200cpush in Texas and admitted \u200bthat his school \u2062could continue their initiatives under a different name, even though\u2064 he joked that \u2064he wasn&#8217;t supposed to say that.<\/p>\n<p>Kevin Nguyen,\u200c associate director \u200cof student \u200badvocacy at the\u200d University of Houston, described their response as &#8220;DEI lite, very lite.&#8221; He \u2063explained that they can promote the ideology\u200c through student groups as\u2063 long as it is not\u2063 officially associated with their office.<\/p>\n<p>Accuracy in Media President Adam Guillette stated that their investigation revealed that while some public colleges\u200c and\u200b universities are following the \u2063new law prohibiting DEI initiatives, many in Texas are finding ways to continue their work. It remains to be seen how \u200bthe state will respond to these efforts \u200dto maintain diversity, \u2064equity, and inclusion \u2063programs\u200b in the face of the ban.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Officials at Texas public universities are discreetly working towards implementing diversity, equity, and inclusion programs despite a statewide ban on the ideology. Hidden camera footage released recently reveals employees from various Texas universities acknowledging their efforts to find innovative methods to overcome the ban<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":2178820,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/iStock-175436351-scaled.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2178819","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/iStock-175436351-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2178819","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/179"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2178819"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2178819\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2178820"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2178819"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2178819"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2178819"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}