Americans are divided over DEI programs on college campuses, poll finds

By JOCELYN GECKER and LINLEY SANDERS WASHINGTON AP As President Donald Trump seeks to end diversity equity and inclusion practices on college campuses a new poll suggests that while the concept of DEI is divisive chosen of the initiatives being affected by his administration s guidance are less controversial Related Articles Older people in crosshairs as ruling body restarts Social Assurance garnishment on learner loans SPPS New Superintendent Stacie Stanley begins first week with district Mahtomedi school district plans M bond referendum Campus protests flare on a smaller scale than last spring but with higher stakes Harvard loses another million in grants in escalating battle with Trump administration The poll conducted earlier this month by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Inhabitants Affairs Research exposed about in Americans strongly or somewhat favor DEI programs in colleges and universities while about in oppose those initiatives and about in are neutral Encouragement is higher for courses on racism and scholarships for students of color among other services designed to help students from underrepresented groups The findings underscore that while DEI has become a politically toxic and unpopular term for countless Americans various components of DEI programs have much less opposition This is especially true among Republicans While about in Republicans oppose DEI programs broadly their opposition softens for multiple of their largest part common elements Just under half of Republicans oppose courses that teach about racism About one-third oppose scholarships for students from underrepresented groups And roughly in oppose clubs and mentorship services for those students About in Democrats by contrast favor DEI programs on college campuses with similar shares supporting courses that teach about racism and scholarships or extracurricular backing services for students from underrepresented groups Divides reflect different views of DEI s meaning Specific of this tension may stem from differing perspectives on what DEI means I m dead set against DEI says poll respondent Robert Ayala an -year-old registered independent who leans Republican His understanding of DEI is giving someone a free ride or hiring people based on their skin color as opposed to their skill set But Ayala says he fully supports scholarships and mentoring to help disadvantaged students Ayala who has Mexican ancestry grew up poor in rural South Dakota faced prejudice as a child and lacked career direction If I was offered a scholarship or training or had somebody to guide me I might have detected my way faster says Ayala who spent years in the Navy then went into contracting and is now retired near Palm Springs California Trump a Republican has signed multiple executive orders to eliminate diversity practices in the federal leadership private companies and in mentoring calling them illegal and immoral He has threatened to cut federal funding to campuses that defy him Specific of his orders are being challenged in court On campuses students of color say colleges responding to the new guidance have cut back scholarships diversity offices and mentors that made them feel welcome on predominantly white campuses Everybody should have the same opportunities as everybody else says Stanley Roberts a registered Republican near Knoxville Tennessee He is somewhat opposed to the idea of DEI and is on the fence about courses that teach about racism because he thinks dwelling on the past creates division What happened years ago or years ago shouldn t have happened he says but if everybody would quit talking about it it would be a whole lot less of a predicament White adults are more likely to oppose DEI programs The poll shows that white adults are more likely than Black and Hispanic adults to oppose DEI programs Black adults are more likely than U S adults overall to favor courses that teach about racism I know this sounds clich to say but the reason I favor teaching about racism is so history doesn t repeat itself says Nicole Martin a Black social worker in Idaho Falls Idaho I hear a lot of Oh just get over it But I think OK you don t want to talk about slavery But we re still talking about the Holocaust and that s OK The poll unveiled that women are more likely than men to say they aid DEI programs on college campuses as well as aid services for students from underrepresented groups Without DEI I am not sure there are numerous chances for understanding other people s experiences says Regina Cuddeback a Democrat in Cortland New York who says her encouragement for DEI depends on the context Cuddeback does not think race should factor into college admissions but DEI programs on campuses are perfectly fine and she does not think the federal establishment should have a say in the courses colleges offer Students have a right to take the classes they want to take says Cuddeback who is white and a registered Democrat For a college to remove a class and say you don t get to learn a certain subject anymore would be pretty abysmal Gecker disclosed from San Francisco The AP-NORC poll of adults was conducted May - using a sample drawn from NORC s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel which is designed to be representative of the U S population The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus percentage points The Associated Press coaching coverage receives financial assistance from multiple private foundations The AP is solely responsible for all content Find the AP s standards for working with philanthropies a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP org