'The threat was real': Palm Beach County School board to end DEI programs over objections

Yahoo

24-04-2025

The Palm Beach County School Board voted Wednesday night to repeal the district's diversity, equity and inclusion rules and statements, heeding a threat from the Trump administration to pull federal funds from districts, colleges and universities that don't drop them.
Board member Edwin Ferguson blasted the push for anti-DEI changes, calling the administration's actions "child-like" and "bullying" and castigating as an "idiot" those who might unwittingly back threats forcing the district to scrap policies that help women as well as minorities.
Because the changes were approved on an emergency basis, they will go into effect immediately and remain so for 90 days. During that time, the district will get input from the public and from district staff, which can suggest alterations. Board members would need to take a second, final vote before the changes become permanent.
Staff recommended the emergency changes because the Trump administration demanded that state education leaders across the country have school districts in their state sign a "reminder of legal obligations" acknowledging that some DEI programs could — in the view of Trump administration officials — violate anti-discrimination laws and subject a district to the loss of tens of millions in federal funding. Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz forwarded that reminder to the Palm Beach County School District on April 10, and Superintendent Mike Burke signed it a week later.
The district got $300 million from the federal government in fiscal year 2025 and is using the money to recruit, train and retain teachers working in schools with a high percentage of poor students. The money is also being used for student meals and to educate special needs students as well as those still learning English.
In addition to the threatened loss of federal funding, the district could have its fiscal year 2026 state funding cut by as much as $47 million, which would make it more difficult for high schools to continue offering AP, IB and AICE programs.
Ferguson was alone in opposition during a series of 6-1 votes Wednesday night as the board repealed district language calling for racial diversity in hiring and promotion and business utilization. He launched an impassioned, prolonged verbal assault on repealing the provisions, repeatedly likening the Trump administration's threats to "children leading the adults."
"My 7-year-old comports herself in a much more forward-thinking and professional manner than some of our leaders in D.C.," Ferguson said.
None of the board members spoke at length in support of the anti-DEI changes, though Gloria Branch told Ferguson she thought that scrapping the district's policy on diversity in business practices was a good idea. And she rejected the notion that she was only voting in favor of the anti-DEI changes because of the threat to the district's federal funding.
"I just want to be clear," she said. "I'm not voting in fear on any of these policies."
Board members were otherwise silent as Ferguson continued to blast away at the proposed changes and urged his colleagues to shrug off fear and call the administration's bluff. Burke said he understood the difficulty of voting for what his staff was recommending.
"I respect your position as a board member," Burke told Ferguson. "I know this is a tough vote for everyone. We're trying to navigate this to the best of our ability. I'm not a real fearful person myself, but I can't look at just my own personal situation. I need to look at the district and their finances. I felt like the threat was real."
The Trump administration has already withheld billions in federal funding from some universities, actions that are being challenged in court along with attention-grabbing administration moves in the areas of immigration, staffing and law. Many of the early court rulings in those cases have gone against the administration, and it is possible — likely even — that some school districts, following the lead of Harvard University, will contest the threat to their federal funding.
Jane Tierney, a board member for the Coalition for Black Student Excellence, urged school board members to delay the implementation of any changes "until such time as the legal questions are resolved."
Tierney said the policies the district had in place "did not create excellence or equity."
"Black students are still disporportionately undereducated," she said. "Black educators do not have an equal chance at promotion. Black businesses still do not get their fair share of contracts from the school district."
The district, the largest employer in the county, has had a program in place to certify and track contract work awarded to businesses owned by women and minorities. Unlike other local governments, the district does not require large firms to share some of the work with firms owned by women or minorities. The district moved away from that program in 2017 in favor of one aimed at helping small businesses, many of which are owned by women and minorities.
The district said it "will be evaluating over the next few weeks" whether to continue with the certification of women- and minority-owned fims and the tracking of contract work awarded to them.
"We acknowledge that continuing to track this information is important for the district and the public to know," a district spokesman said.
While much of the focus of DEI programs is on their benefit to racial and ethnic minorities, they are often a boon to women.
Ferguson said those who oppose DEI programs and are happy to see the Trump administration push for their demise "will soon realize, 'Oh, shoot. That was something that could have benefited my daughter. I have dreams and aspirations for my daughter. You mean I'm stopping that from happening?' Yeah, idiot, you are. Yes, you are."
Trump and other Republicans have described DEI programs as as a form of reverse discrimination against whites that put minorities in positions of authority without merit. They also argue that the programs violate federal laws against discrimination. Democrats counter that the programs are a necessary tool to ensure that women and minorities are included in job candidate pools and that the views of people in marginalized communities are taken into account as policy is crafted.
Ferguson told his colleagues that the administration's threat to pull the district's federal funding over DEI is an empty one.
"If you're fool enough to pull our federal funding, guess what's going to happen?" he said. "Those same persons who put you in office are going to see you out of office because — guess what? — they have a fair number of people who are receiving (federal) funds. All those monies that we rely on to make this machine hum? A lot of their children are going to be suffering if you pull that $300 million."
Ferguson's faith in electoral consequences for Trump if he pulls federal funding from school districts doesn't square with the president's political history. Many of Trump's most ardent supporters are low- and middle-income workers who back him and other Republicans despite their opposition to unions, expanded access to Medicaid and a higher minimum wage.
Still, Ferguson told board members they should not fear the administration's threat to pull the district's federal funding.
"We should let them do it and see what happens," he said. "I promise you they'll flip flop just like the silly tariffs that are implemented one day and then flipped off the next. It's the exact same thing. You know who you're dealing with."
Many of those who have spoken out against Trump have subsequently faced political and physical threats from the president and his supporters. Ferguson indicated he understood that reality.
"I'm willing to stand on the line in this regard," he said. "I may be making a target of myself, but I didn't expect to be here forever anyway. I'm going to do what I was asked to do by my constituents while I can do it. This foolishness that we're having to capitulate to, I can't tacitly support."
Wayne Washington is a journalist covering education for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at [e-mail]. Help support our work; subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palm Beach County School Board to end DEI programs heeds Trump threat