Americans split on college DEI programs: Survey

The Hill

15-05-2025

Americans are largely split on support for college diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs and what those initiatives actually mean, according to a new survey.
The Associated Press/NORC Research Center poll, released Thursday, found that when asked about DEI programs on college campuses, 30 percent strongly or somewhat oppose the initiatives, 30 percent were neutral and 40 percent are in favor.
White Americans and Republicans were more likely than Black or Hispanic Americans, along with Democrats, to oppose DEI programs. About 60 percent of Republicans were against the programs while 70 percent of Democrats said the opposite, the survey shows.
But the numbers get more interesting when Republicans were asked about specific aspects of DEI.
The pollsters found that more than half of Republicans support courses that teach about racism, while 33 percent are against scholarships targeted to minority students and 30 percent oppose clubs and services for certain racial or ethnic groups.
While GOP respondents are more supportive of those programs, the split in the party on the matter is evident as the Trump administration goes after K-12 schools and higher education over 'illegal' DEI practices.
While the federal government warned schools they could lose federal funding due to diversity, equity and inclusion programs, a judge has halted the threat due to the vagueness of what is considered DEI.
The Education Department has given some indication of what DEI initiatives it will go after as it opened an investigation into Chicago Public Schools for creating success plans for Black students but not for other races.
The AP/NORC poll was conducted from May 1-5 among 1,175 adults and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.