As many universities take down their DEI websites, Princeton’s sites largely remain

As some universities scrub diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) websites to comply with the Trump administration’s executive orders targeting diversity efforts, Princeton’s websites have largely remained up.

The main website of the Office of Diversity & Inclusion, for instance, is still available. So are pages for DEI in athletics, the Office of the Dean for Research, and the Department of English.

One website, “Visions for a More Just World — To Be Known and Heard: Systemic Racism and Princeton University” was recently taken down. According to an archived version of the website, it aims to confront the history of racism at Princeton and share current anti-racist work at the University. The website included documentation of initiatives, such as removing Woodrow Wilson’s name from the School of Public and International Affairs, endowing a professorship in Indigenous Studies, and creating The Princeton & Slavery Project. It also included history and interviews about racism at the University. While the exact date it was removed is unclear, a version of the website was up as recently as Jan. 20.

In a statement to The Daily Princetonian, University spokesperson Jennifer Morrill wrote, “The Office of Campus Engagement decided to remove the site, given that it had not been used in programming or for educational purposes in several years.”

At other institutions, measures have been more drastic. For example, the University of Pennsylvania’s main Diversity and Inclusion website was taken down on Feb. 14 and renamed “Belonging at Penn.” Information about academic inclusion programs, student affinity groups, and demographic data were removed, while the updated website contained a three-sentence statement about Penn’s “commitment to equal opportunity.”

Penn’s website removal came on the same day the United States Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) gave universities two weeks to eliminate race-based programs. The letter said that universities risk losing federal funding if they continue to take race into account in “all … aspects of student, academic, and campus life.” While Princeton still has another week to ensure compliance, Morrill wrote, “Princeton will continue to comply with all federal anti-discrimination laws as interpreted by the U.S. Supreme Court and other federal courts.”

“The University remains committed to the principle that excellence depends on attracting talented people from all backgrounds and ensuring they can thrive on our campus,” she added.

Other universities that took down or altered DEI web pages include the main DEI website at the University of Colorado, offices, schools, and divisions of the University of Chicago, and some websites at the University of Arizona, Stanford University, and Columbia University.

According to Morrill, when it comes to diversity in admissions, “[The University’s] admission processes operate in a manner consistent with current laws as articulated in SFFA [Students for Fair Admissions v. Presidents and Fellows of Harvard College].”

She shared a similar sentiment about the University’s view on diversity in employment, writing, “With regard to employment, the University operates in compliance with all federal and state laws that prohibit discrimination in employment.”

Lia Opperman is a senior News writer and the Director of Outreach emerita for the ‘Prince.’ She is from Southern N.J. and typically covers academic policy, national higher education, and University finances.

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