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On May 15, 2025, Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita issued a Letter to the University of Notre Dame<\/a> concerning the University\u2019s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies and practices. On June 4, 2025, he sent a similar letter to Butler University<\/a> and DePauw University<\/a>. Each states concern that the institutions may \u201ctreat students, faculty, staff and others differently based on race under the guise of DEI\u201d in violation of the U.S. Supreme Court\u2019s 2023 decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard<\/em> (SFFA) in which the Court held that race-based admissions practices in higher education are unlawful. The AG requested information to determine whether the schools\u2019 DEI programs are consistent with the law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The AG based its inquiry on publicly available materials and statements, including leadership statements, strategic plans including purported faculty diversity targets, racially segregated ceremonies and other practices.\u00a0 The AG\u2019s inquiry addresses whether these schools\u2019 operations may be governed by policies that \u201ctreat individuals \u2014 including students, prospective students, faculty, staff and job applicants \u2014 differently based on the individuals\u2019 race or ethnicity; employ race in a negative manner when making admissions or hiring decisions; or utilize racial stereotyping.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n This state attorney general DEI investigation raises new risks, at both the federal and state level, for these universities. The AG is seeking to establish a potential violation of federal civil rights laws under its interpretation of the authority of SFFA<\/em>, which may have repercussions not only at the state level but also for federal funding and accreditation status where a detailed finding is established. At the state level, the investigative demands suggest that the government may be seeking to develop a case that the universities are potentially in violation of state civil rights laws as well as state nonprofit law because \u201cracial discrimination by any nonprofit university cannot be squared with the public or charitable purposes that a nonprofit is supposed to serve.\u201d Any state finding of violation of state nonprofit tax formation law, conversely, could have impacts on the universities\u2019 federal tax status.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Each university was asked to provide information about their admissions and hiring practices, including details about any changes made to their practices following SFFA<\/em>.\u00a0 Attorney General Rokita also requested documents showing what guidance the schools provide to faculty and admissions staff regarding DEI goals. He also asked the schools to explain whether and how race plays a role in their efforts to recruit, hire and enroll members of underrepresented groups.\u202f\u00a0Attorney General Rokita indicated that responses from the universities will be used to determine whether his office takes further action to ensure the schools are \u201coperating consistently with the terms of their nonprofit statuses and Indiana\u2019s legal and moral commitment to racial equality.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" On May 15, 2025, Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita issued a Letter to the University of Notre Dame concerning the University\u2019s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies and practices. On June 4, 2025, he sent a similar letter to Butler University and DePauw University. Each states concern that the institutions may \u201ctreat students, faculty, staff … <\/p>\n