On Jan. 20, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order requiring the end of all DEI programs in federal offices. Further reinforcing this stance, a letter from Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights in the U.S. Department of Education Craig Trainor was sent to K-12 and post-secondary institutions, declaring that DEI initiatives aimed at “racial balancing” and “social justice” violate Supreme Court precedent.
Seven weeks later, the Trump administration laid off half of the staff at the Department of Education (DOE), most of whom were in the Federal Student Aid Office, which handles student loans, and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR), which enforces discrimination protections.
With these sweeping changes at the federal level, many schools across the country are faced with difficult questions about the future of DEI programs.
In a series of campus-wide emails sent out in January, Moravian responded by reaffirming the university’s commitment to inclusivity.
“We remain united in our resolve to champion respect, empathy, and belonging,” wrote Moravian University President Bryon Grigsby and Vice President/Dean for Equity and Inclusion Chris Hunt. “Together, we will continue to create an environment where excellence is inclusive and every individual can thrive.”
While the university has been quick to reaffirm its support for inclusivity, student reactions are mixed.
“The University’s response to these challenges regarding DEI programs seems a bit too quiet,” said Treasurer of the Latino Rhythm Club, Karen Martinez ‘26. “An email seems a bit too simple and easy for students to ignore.”
Other students, however, felt reassured by how the school is taking an active stance.
Aarifa Rabbani ‘27 has participated in a variety of programs that promote diversity and inclusion such as the Ubuntu program, a mentorship program sponsored by the Center for Inclusive Excellence and Moravian’s DEI Affinity Clubs.
“I’ve seen the genuine efforts that Moravian and the Center of Inclusive Excellence put in for DEI initiatives, and this recent response furthered my confidence in that,” said Rabbani.
United Student Government Senator of Inclusive Excellence, Aspen Bradley ‘28, hopes that the school’s response and future actions will continue to reaffirm its commitment to inclusive excellence. They also say that they will remain watchful over the changing landscape. Bradley emphasizes the importance of talking to employees on campus who can give accurate information about current events.
“I talk to the people in the Center for Inclusive Excellence all the time, just [asking], what do you think about this? What’s new with what’s going on? Is there anything that I, as a student, should be concerned about?” said Bradley.
As federal policies continue to shift, Moravian is dedicating resources to protect students and ensure that every student is successful. Hunt notes that Moravian University General Counsel, Heather Hosfeld, is keeping up-to-date on the latest directives from the new administration and is giving legal counsel to the university on how to proceed.
In particular, Hosfeld went through all of the university’s programs, websites, and publications to investigate whether anything violated the recommendations in the “Dear Colleague” letter that the DOE sent out to American educational institutions on Feb.14. The four-page letter specifically targets institutions with DEI programming and threatens to pull funding from schools that do not comply with its recommendations against affirmative action.
“We have to remember that the Dear Colleague letter is a recommendation, not the law,” Grigsby said.
Grigsby noted that the school has not received any OCR complaints, as Lafayette College and Lehigh University have, as reported by The Morning Call.
“We did not find anything of substance or significance,” Grigsby said. “We had already changed the office that had embraced inclusive excellence even before the Trump administration had come in because that was [Hunt’s] vision.”
Additionally, the Office of Financial Aid is closely monitoring the ongoing developments. The office is also preparing for any contingencies, especially after the Department of Education laid off half of its staff, which can affect how student loans are disbursed from FAFSA.
Immediately following the layoffs, the Washington Post reported that the FAFSA portal temporarily shut down after tech staffers at the DOE were locked out of their work computers. Additionally, the Washington Post reports that there have been glitches and delays for FAFSA due to staffing shortages.
The Moravian Police Department is doing its part by monitoring activity by federal law enforcement, which elsewhere has included raids and arrests of suspected undocumented immigrants by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials. MU Police are investigating how it would need to respond to such incidents on Moravian’s campus.
The Center for Inclusive Excellence has also hosted Friday Forums where students can express concerns and process recent events directly to school administrators.
“We are dedicating every resource and every thought and thinking of every idea to make sure that their education and their time here is not impacted by changing policies,” said Hunt.
Grigsby and Hunt emphasize that Moravian was founded on John Amos Comenius’ principle that education should be for everyone. They argue that Moravian’s tradition of inclusion dates back hundreds of years since the school’s founding, and they have no intention of abandoning that tradition.
“It shouldn’t just be the privileged few who have access to education,” said Hunt. “It should be available and accessible to all people, regardless of their background, their class, and their status.”
