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Northeastern changes its DEI website following Trump’s executive order
Any changes coming to DEI are “partly because we need to continue to comply with the law," said Jack Cline, the university’s vice president on federal relations.
Northeastern University appears to be the first higher education institution in Boston that has altered their messaging around diversity, equity, and inclusion policies after President Donald Trump issued an executive order affecting certain colleges and universities.
Trump signed the order “ending illegal discrimination and restoring merit-based opportunity,” which dismantled DEI initiatives within the federal government and targeted private sector policies, including at colleges and universities with endowments over $1 billion.
The order specifically calls for the end of DEI for recipients of federal grants and contracts, while it also threatened investigations of the private universities and colleges.
“The American people have witnessed first-hand the disastrous consequences of illegal, pernicious discrimination that has prioritized how people were born instead of what they were capable of doing,” the order read.
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In Massachusetts, there are 13 institutions with endowments of at least $1 billion, according to the Boston Business Journal, including Northeastern, Harvard, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
As recently as Jan. 24, Northeastern’s website of “Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” was at diversity.northeastern.edu. That link now redirects to belonging.northeastern.edu, which is a sparse website titled “Belonging at Northeastern,” without any mention of the office.
The page also includes a link to the Presidential Council on Belonging, which appears to be the same as the now-gone Presidential Council of Diversity and Inclusion.
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Jack Cline, the university’s vice president on federal relations, told Northeastern’s news outlet that any changes coming to DEI are “partly because we need to continue to comply with the law. “
“We’re an institution that embraces a culture of belonging, because we know that having a diversity of backgrounds and experiences make us better at teaching, at research, at solving the world’s problems,” Cline told Northeastern Global News. “The methods we use to achieve those goals may need to be adjusted, though.”
In a statement, Vice President for Communications Renata Nyul said the Boston school’s “commitment to embracing our entire global community remains steadfast.
“While internal structures and approaches may need to be adjusted, the university’s core values don’t change. We believe that embracing our differences – and building a community of belonging – makes Northeastern stronger,” Nyul said.
Harvard, MIT, Boston University, and Tufts University all did not return requests for comment on whether they are planning any changes to their DEI initiatives or policies following Trump’s order.
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