Back in May the Board of Governors for the University of North Carolina college system, which includes 17 campuses, voted to do away with DEI. The UNC system president, Peter Hans, made some good comments about the decision at the time.

“It’s good for college students to encounter liberal ideas, to become familiar with the best forms of progressive thought our society has to offer. It’s good for college students to encounter conservative ideas, to appreciate traditional perspectives and hear strong right-of-center arguments,” Hans said.

But he added that “it’s vital that college administrators stay out of it altogether.”

That vote followed one at UNC-Chapel Hill where the Board of Trustees cut DEI spending by more than $2 million and transferred the money to the campus police.

But the rousting of DEI functionaries is still underway. Two weeks ago UNC Charlotte announced it was closing three DEI offices and reassigning 11 staff members.

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion, Office of Identity, Equity and Engagement, and Office of Academic Diversity and Inclusion have been disbanded in response to UNC System Board of Governors’ decision in May to repeal its previous DEI policy.

The new policy, “Equality Within the University of North Carolina,” mandates that all UNC System institutions adhere to principles of institutional neutrality, prohibiting the promotion of political or social concepts. Specifically, it bans the establishment or maintenance of offices dedicated to diversity, equity, and inclusion at any institution within the UNC System. All institutions are required to certify their compliance with this policy by September 1, 2024.

In the transition, UNC Charlotte reassigned 11 employees affected by the closures to new roles within the university, assuring that no layoffs occurred as a result of the changes. Funding previously allocated to DEI initiatives will be redirected towards student success programs, focusing on enhancing graduation rates, degree efficiency, and mental health support.

Closing the offices and redirecting the money sounds great but reassigning these employees is probably a mistake. Presumably all 11 of them were hired for these jobs because of their deep commitment to DEI principles. Are we supposed to believe they are going to drop those when they get reassigned? 

We've already had a number of schools attempt to circumvent the crackdown on DEI through what has become known as DEI rebranding. They just change the name of the office and maybe some of the titles but nothing really changes. Hopefully UNC won't allow that to happen.

Today, another UNC campus announced it would close its DEI office, though again it sounds like only "some aspects" of the school's race-based cultural centers will change.

The University of North Carolina at Wilmington has decided to close its office dedicated to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) following a policy change by the UNC System Board of Governors earlier this year...

According to the message, the school will maintain multiple cultural and identity centers, including the Upperman African American Cultural Center, the Mohin-Scholz LGBTQIA Resource Center, Centro Hispano, and the Asian Heritage Cultural Center.

The purposes and priorities of these centers, however, will alter following the university’s DEI reform. “Some aspects of their staffing and programming will change to comply with the policy requirements and enhance their fit within Student Affairs,” Volety wrote.

Again, this could be genuine change or it could be more rebranding designed to sidestep the clear intent of the Board of Governors. Last month the UNC System Division of Legal Affairs sent a letter notifying schools they would have to offer an account of the changes made so far.

While the guidance from the Division of Legal Affairs doesn’t state specifically if colleges need to eliminate DEI-related roles, it says that they cannot simply change employees’ titles.

“The actual work of the University must return to advancing the academic success of students with different backgrounds not different political causes — job titles and responsibilities should follow suit,” the letter states.

Each school is required to respond to the letter by Sep. 1. It's a good start, but I would recommend annual checks on these programs if UNC is serious about keeping DEI off its campuses.