The US State Department is preparing to suspend more than three dozen universities from a prestigious research partnership programme over their diversity, equity and inclusion hiring practices, internal documents reveal.
Elite Institutions Face January Suspension
Thirty-eight American universities including Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Duke and Johns Hopkins could be excluded from the Diplomacy Lab programme starting 1st January. The initiative pairs academic researchers with State Department policy offices to collaborate on foreign policy projects.
According to an internal memo dated 17th November obtained by the Guardian, the suspensions would significantly reshape the academic partnership network. While 38 institutions face removal, 10 new schools have been approved to join the programme.
Compliance and Consequences
The State Department's proposed criteria would only include institutions with merit-based hiring practices while excluding those with DEI policies, whether implemented openly or discreetly.
Several universities have already moved to comply with the administration's anti-DEI demands. Columbia University agreed in July to pay over $200 million to the federal government and pledged not to use race, colour, sex or national origin in hiring decisions. The University of Virginia's president resigned in June after the justice department demanded he step down over the school's diversity practices.
Other institutions recommended to remain in the programme include MIT, the University of Michigan, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Texas at Austin.
University Responses and Programme Impact
Peter Trumbore, chair of the political science department at Oakland University - one of the institutions facing suspension - said they've received no official notification. "We receive no funding from the state department for the projects that we do as Diplomacy Lab participants," he noted, while emphasising the programme's value for students.
The University of Southern California stated it "complies with all applicable federal nondiscrimination laws and does not engage in any unlawful DEI hiring practices." The university acknowledged appreciating travel funding provided by the programme for two students in 2017.
Sarah Voigt of St Catherine University revealed the school had been notified of a pause in Diplomacy Lab activities earlier this year on 31st January, with the programme shut down "due to a lack of government funding."
A State Department spokesperson confirmed the review, stating: "The Trump administration is very clear about its stance on DEI. The state department is reviewing all programs to ensure that they are in line with the president's agenda."
The final list of suspended institutions has not been confirmed, meaning affected universities have not yet been formally notified of their potential exclusion from the valuable research partnership.
