The Department of Education issued a letter on Feb. 14 to educational institutions that receive federal funding, including universities such as Sacramento State, notifying them they have 14 days to cease using race preferences and stereotypes in admission decisions or risk losing federal funding.
The letter authored by Craig Trainor, the department’s assistant secretary for civil rights, states that after 14 days from Feb. 14, all public or private federally funded schools that have not shown compliance may face the loss of federal support by Feb. 28.
The letter said that schools have been using racial preferences in their admissions, hiring, promotion, compensation, scholarships, prizes, administrative support and beyond.
Amy Bentley-Smith, director of media relations and public affairs for the CSU Chancellor’s office, released a statement Monday, Feb. 24 regarding the Department of Education’s letter.
“As this type of action is unprecedented, we are consulting with the California Attorney General and higher education partners across the country to better understand the statewide impact of this letter.” Smith said. “However, the CSU remains committed to fostering an inclusive learning environment that is in compliance with university policies and both state and federal laws.”
When reached for comment, Sac State directed The State Hornet to the CSU Chancellor’s office and Smith’s statement.
The letter comes after President Donald Trump’s Jan. 20 executive orders attempting to ban Diversity, Equity and Inclusion policies instituted by President Joe Biden’s administration in 2021. Stating that all educational institutions are advised to ensure their policies and decisions comply with existing civil rights laws such as Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
RELATED: Sac State students stand with undocumented immigrants
Senior communications major Devin Flores said it is incredibly unfortunate that DEI is being removed. He also said that diversity is more than just age, race and gender.
“Equity is people who are handicapped or neurodivergent, or economically disadvantaged, and equity can be seen as remote work,” Flores said.
Flores said he was concerned for the smaller demographics of people in the country, and that diversity is a beautiful thing. He said that Sacramento is a diverse place, and people should try to be media literate to help sort through the noise of politics.
“To me, it’s just so glaringly hypocritical and false, and I just don’t understand how going after programs that are meant to elevate and include minorities is seen as a bad thing,” Flores said.
According to the letter, schools must also “cease all efforts to circumvent prohibitions on the use of race by relying on proxies,” meaning colleges may not attempt to use workarounds, such as using socioeconomic status as opposed to race, to indirectly factor in race.
According to the letter, universities must also cut ties with third-party race-based initiatives, such as the Center on Race, Immigration and Social Justice or the Office of Equal Opportunity.
RELATED: Protest against Project 2025 at California Capitol
Junior journalism major Eli Keller said he is incredibly frustrated by the Trump administration’s actions.
“The fact that he’s threatening to shut down cultural centers and [is] now exterminating race from the scholarship admissions process makes his intentions blatantly obvious,” Keller said ”He doesn’t have any empathy for the middle or lower class and refuses to acknowledge that opportunity is not equal among all races.”
Junior journalism major Maya Taylor said that she hopes Sac State and other schools in California won’t be affected by the policy changes being made by Trump’s administration.
“I don’t know if our school is strong-willed enough to fight administrative policy,” Taylor said. “That’s our school’s thing, how big and diverse we are, so I’m interested to see how things will change when these next 14 days are up.”
