Judge blocks Trump guidance that threatened DEI programs in schools

(The Hill) — U.S. District Judge Stephanie Gallagher in a Thursday ruling permanently blocked two memos issued by the Trump administration that threatened schools with funding cuts for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs.

Earlier in the year, the Trump administration issued a “Dear Colleague” letter for universities threatening to take funding if they don’t end “illegal” DEI efforts. Soon after, K-12 districts got a memo to certify they have no DEI practices in their schools.

The American Federation of Teachers, Democracy Forward and others sued over both of the memos, arguing it did not go through the proper procedures and violates the rights of schools.

“Plaintiffs have shown that neither challenged agency action was promulgated in accordance with the procedural requirement