How Iowa colleges are navigating DEI opposition
DES MOINES, Iowa — Colleges across Iowa are navigating potential state and federal mandates that could impact their funding because of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
DEI programs and offices are facing opposition on both a federal and state level.
Nationally, the United States Department of Education sent a letter in February warning academic institutions to remove DEI policies or risk funding cuts.
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The letter was addressed by Craig Trainor, the department's Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights. In it, he describes that DEI initiatives are discriminatory. He wrote, '[DEI initiatives] frequently preference certain racial groups and teach students that certain racial groups bear unique moral burdens that others do not.'
He went on to say, 'They deny students the ability to participate fully in the life of a school.'
The letter indicates that consequential funding cuts would be made within two weeks of that notification, however, no news of budget cuts to any academic institutions in the country has been reported yet.
On a state level, three bills addressing DEI in academic institutions passed last week's funnel deadline.
House File 855 addresses DEI in community schools. This bill bars community colleges from funding or maintaining DEI offices. This bill would add community colleges to the law passed last year, which banned DEI offices in state universities.
House File 854 addresses DEI in private universities. This bill would prohibit private universities from opening, funding, or maintaining a DEI office if they want to participate in the Iowa Tuition Grant Program.
House File 269 addresses DEI courses in public universities. This bill would bar any state university from requiring students to take diversity, equity, or inclusion courses for general education requirements.
Despite there not being mandates yet, some colleges are already reacting. Grand View University cancelled its International Women's Day Celebration, which was scheduled to take place on Monday, March 10th. This would have been the third annual celebration.
A spokesperson for the school provided this statement to WHO 13 News:
'Protecting our students' access to state and federal funding is a priority. The decision to cancel the International Women's Day event was made in light of orders and policy guidance from the federal government threatening to withhold federal funding for noncompliance and/or for any exclusionary programming. There is not yet a clear definition of 'DEI' or 'DEIA' from the federal government. Gender is often included in the definition of DEI/DEIA, so the event was cancelled out of an abundance of caution. A private, non-university sanctioned event is being held instead.'
Kendall Dillon Vice President for Marketing and Communications, Grand View University
Earlier this year, the Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) sent a letter to employees informing them that they suspended DEI meetings and staff training, a spokesperson for the college confirmed to WHO 13 News.
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However, Grinnell College and Drake University both said there are no new mandates for them to act on yet.
A spokesperson for Grinnell said:
'Grinnell College prohibits all unlawful discrimination. As such, the College's programs are open to all students, faculty, and staff and none are mandatory. As required by law, our work is focused on creating opportunity for everyone to see themselves reflected in the institution and prohibit unlawful discrimination on the basis of race, sex, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, veteran status, or any other protected class. The College monitors state and federal law on an ongoing basis and maintains compliance with existing laws.'
Ellen de GraffenreidGrinnell College Communications
A spokesperson for Drake said:
'While we are paying close attention to the potential implications, at this time there is no established law for us to act on — either from the state or federal government.'
Sue MattisonDrake University Provost
As a result of the law previously mentioned that was passed last session banning state universities from maintaining a DEI office, the University of Iowa, Iowa State University, and the University of Northern Iowa have all eliminated their DEI departments.
One Iowa is a group advocating for LGBTQ Iowans. Its Director of Policy and Advocacy, Keenan Crow, said eliminating DEI departments and initiatives can have a negative impact on students.
Crow said, 'Offices that used to provide support and staff for those folks to navigate the college system, those offices have all been deleted or they have been renamed and repurpose to the point where it's not apparent that's where those students need to go, and so again and again we're just chipping away at infrastructure that's meant to support students and increase their inclusivity in spaces that they have traditionally not been included in.'
The second funnel deadline for Iowa's 91st General Assembly is April 4th. The three DEI bills will have to pass the Iowa Senate to stay active in this session.
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Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Lunging men are perceived as dangerous. In an America that has long weaponized descriptions of how men of color look and move to justify use of force, that is especially true of dark men lunging at white women. So when Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said after Sen. Alex Padilla interrupted her news conference Thursday that 'people need to identify themselves before they start lunging' — it's hard to believe it wasn't meant to be an intentionally loaded word, with loaded results. For those of you who don't watch Fox and other right-wing media, I'll fill you in on how Noem's description played out. Padilla, the Trumpian version of the story now goes, got what he deserved: He busted into a press conference uninvited, they say, pushed his way toward the stage and failed to identify himself. Just ask my inbox. 'Here is what your article should have said,' wrote one fan of my column about the incident. 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Padilla said that he was in the federal building on Thursday for a briefing with a general, because for weeks he's been trying unsuccessfully to get answers about how deportations are being handled. That briefing was delayed by Noem's news conference, and so — escorted by federal authorities who knew exactly who they were escorting, Padilla said — he went to listen to Noem in the hopes of getting some information. Padilla said he got fed up listening to her remarks about criminals and invasions and tried to ask a question, while moving forward past the wall of television cameras. In the videos I've watched, multiple federal agents — seemingly some from Homeland Security and the FBI — block his way then begin pushing him back. Padilla seems to continue to push forward, but is overpowered and forced into the hallway. It's here where he's taken to the ground and cuffed. It's hard to see a lunge in there. And if there was one, it was from at least a good 10 feet away from Noem, at a minimum. Use-of-force expert Ed Obayashi told me that in situations such as this, law enforcement officers are expected to use their judgment on what is a danger. 'They were trying to keep him from approaching,' Obayashi said, pointing out it was the officers' job to protect Noem. 'They were trying to do what they could under the circumstances to prevent him from getting closer.' But, he added, from what we can see in the videos, it doesn't look like Padilla showed 'intent' to cause harm and he was really far away. Distance makes a difference when judging whether a lunge is a threat. 'It doesn't seem like he was going to rush up,' Obayashi said. So, to be fair to officers who may or may not have at first realized they were manhandling a U.S. senator, they had a job to do and were doing it, even if a bit zealously. But Noem knows better. It's hard to imagine she didn't recognize Padilla, who served on her confirmation committee and is the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship and Border Safety. And if she didn't, her confidant and close advisor Corey Lewandowski certainly did. Padilla told the New York Times that he was being detained in the hallway 'when of all people, Corey Lewandowski ... comes running down the hall and he starts yelling, 'Let him go! Let him go!'' And of course, Padilla was yelling that he was a senator, and forcefully denies any lunge. 'I wasn't lunging at her or anybody, and yes, I identified myself,' he said on CNN. Noem, of course, could have said something in the moment to defuse the situation. She could have asked Padilla back into the room to answer his question. Padilla said the two met after the news conference and spoke for about 15 minutes, which means Noem knew his intentions when she later accused him of 'lunging.' So what could have been handled as an unfortunate encounter was instead purposely upgraded for propaganda purposes. Shortly after Noem's statement, the White House press secretary posted on X that Padilla 'recklessly lunged toward the podium,' cementing that narrative into right-wing conscientiousness. For weeks, the Trump administration has been ramping up its war on dissent. Weeks before Padilla was handcuffed, U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.) was indicted by a grand jury for 'forcibly impeding and interfering' with federal law enforcement after a scuffle outside of a New Jersey ICE detention center. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested during the same incident, but charges were later dropped. In April, Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan was arrested inside her own courthouse after being accused of helping an immigrant appearing in her court to evade ICE officers by allowing him to exit through a public door. And just before the Padilla incident, Noem claimed that federal agents would remain in Los Angeles despite protests, where hundreds have been cited or arrested. By Friday, Marines had been deployed in Los Angeles, with little clarity on whether their guns contained live rounds and under what circumstances they were authorized to fire. 'We are staying here to liberate the city from the socialists and the burdensome leadership that this governor and that this mayor have placed on this country and what they have tried to insert into the city,' Noem said, right before Padilla interrupted. Liberate an American city. With troops. Quash dissent. With fear. A survey last fall by PRRI found that 26% of Republicans say that 'it is necessary for the progress of this country that the president has the power to limit the influence of opposing parties and groups.' It also found that there is a 'strong overlap among Americans who hold Christian nationalist and authoritarian views.' 'If it is the case that Trump and Kristi Noem and Pete Hegseth are going to continue arresting Democratic representatives, then that is authoritarianism,' Donovan said. 'Those are the people whose job it is to represent the common man, and if they can't do that because they're so bogged down with false charges or trumped-up charges, then we don't live in a democracy.' Padilla may have lost his trademark cool during that press conference, but Noem did not. She knew exactly what she was saying, and why. A Padilla asking questions is a threat to Trump. A Padilla lunging becomes a threat to society, one that only Trump can stop.
