Several states are refusing to comply or expressing hesitation with the Department of Education‘s April 24 deadline to comply with an anti-DEI certification or risk losing federal funding, setting up a showdown with the Trump administration.
On April 3, the Education Department sent a letter to state commissioners overseeing K-12 State Education Agencies requesting that they certify compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bars race and sex based discrimination in schools, and the 2023 Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard decision, ending affirmative action in college admissions.
The letter also explicitly threatens that the use of diversity, equity, and inclusion in schools is “impermissible” and a violation of federal law. But doesn’t define what actions violate the anti-DEI measures.
States were given 10 days to comply before the deadline was extended to April 24.
“The Department of Education will consider opening investigations into states that refuse to certify compliance pursuant to [the Office of Civil Rights] Title VI authority,” Madi Biedermann, a spokeswoman for the DOE, told the Washington Examiner in a statement. “This is not controversial: The Civil Rights Act has been the law of the land for decades. We are merely asking states to certify their compliance with federal antidiscrimination law, which is a condition of their federal funding.”
However, there have been mixed responses to how states have responded to the April 3 letter.
Some states and territories, such as Arkansas, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Texas, American Samoa, Guam, and Puerto Rico, signed the certification, earning praise from Education Secretary Linda McMahon.
Earlier this month, Mahon recognized Puerto Rico “for being the first to certify that discrimination or harmful race-preferencing is not allowed in your classrooms” in a social media post.
Indiana officials said they would comply with the certification by collecting signatures from local school districts, citing Republican Gov. Mike Braun’s executive order on Title VI and the Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard decision.
“In alignment with this EO, the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) fully intends to sign the certification and continues to work with schools to collect signed certification forms from each local educational agency in the state,” Courtney Crown, a spokeswoman for the Indiana Department of Education, said in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
In New Hampshire, education unions, including the National Education Association, sued the Trump administration to prevent the enforcement of the certification, with Judge Landya McCafferty deliberating over issuing a preliminary injunction before the Thursday deadline.
However, the Republican-led Granite State’s education department set up a website that required its local educational agencies, or LEAs, to certify compliance by April 17. McMahon praised the tracker as “a model of transparency for other states and territories.”
“No one should be subject to discrimination in New Hampshire, including educators and students,” a spokesperson from the New Hampshire Department of Education told the Washington Examiner in a statement. “The request from the U.S. Department of Education is consistent with recent actions taken by the New Hampshire House Finance Committee, and the New Hampshire Department of Education is in the process of assuring appropriate compliance.”
In total, at least 16 states and Puerto Rico intend to sign the certification, according to Education Weekly, while 16 states have declined to sign.
Many of the states that have flat out refused to sign the order by citing their commitment to DEI policies are led by Democratic governors.
Among those states are New York, the first state to publicly thumb its nose at the certification request, Colorado, Washington, Minnesota, Oregon, Wisconsin, Vermont, and Utah, with the latter two states having Republican governors.
Daniel Morton-Bentley, counsel and deputy commissioner of New York’s Department of Education, claimed there weren’t any federal laws “prohibiting the principles of DEI.”
Similarly, Pennsylvania’s acting Secretary of Education Carrie Rowe wrote in an April 9 letter to LEAs that the Education Department’s letter mentioned DEI but “did not identify those practices or define ‘illegal DEI,’ and there are no federal or state laws generally prohibiting efforts relating to diversity, equity, or inclusion.”
Utah sent a response letter to the Department of Education outlining its efforts to comply with anti-discrimination laws that it claims already meet the certification requirements.
“The annual assurances completed by our LEAs reflect USBE’s commitment to upholding both state and federal civil rights laws,” said Utah Superintendent of Public Instruction Sydnee Dickson. “We remain dedicated to meeting these legal obligations and maintaining transparency with our federal partners and local communities.”
Vermont signed the certification complying with Title VI, but did not certify the Department of Education’s request against the use of “illegal DEI” in schools.
“Our certification that Vermont is in compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its implementing regulations is limited to its language and scope as described above,” wrote Education Secretary Zoie Saunders. “It does not incorporate any other Executive Orders, memoranda, or guidance materials or the undefined language regarding ‘certain DEI practices’ or ‘illegal DEI’ in the Request for Certification.”
Other states were blunt in ignoring the Trump administration’s requests.
Patrick Tutwiler, Massachusetts’s interim commissioner of the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, defiantly told the Department of Education, “Massachusetts will continue to promote diversity in our schools because we know it improves outcomes for all of our kids, and we have more work to do.”
“We are standing up for the rights of all Oregonians and will continue to promote diversity in our schools because we recognize it enhances learning outcomes for all students,” ODE director Dr. Charlene Williams wrote in a letter to the federal government.
Democratic-led states such as Michigan, California, Delaware, and Illinois also signaled they wouldn’t sign the order, claiming the order was not necessary.
“As part of our administration of federal education programs, MDE submits regular grant applications certifying compliance with all required assurances, all of which have been approved by the U.S. Department of Education (USDOE),” said Michigan Superintendent Michael Rice in an April 10 letter. “These certifications and assurances for grant awards remain in effect, and our commitment to adhering to our prior certifications and assurances has not changed. The requested recertification appears therefore unnecessary.”
Delaware Secretary of Education Cynthia Marten wrote back to the Trump administration, claiming that “DDOE and our subgrantees are committed to ensuring that every student has access to a quality education, free from discriminatory practices and policies and consistent with all applicable federal laws.”
“We are concerned that USDOE seemingly seeks to change the terms and conditions of the
Illinois State Board of Education’s award without formal administrative process,” wrote Tony Sanders, state superintendent, in an April 9 letter to the Department of Education.
The Trump administration claims that the move to ensure compliance is a federal necessity and “is not controversial.”
“When schools agree to receive federal funding, they are legally obligated to comply with civil rights statutes, which have been the law of the land for decades,” said acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor in a statement. “For too long, this compliance has been a ‘check-the-box’ exercise for states. They certify compliance to receive federal funds, but they do not actively ensure all policies and practices are in line with Title VI.”
That didn’t stop the NAACP and the Legal Defense Fund from filing a federal lawsuit blasting the Trump administration for a “legally flawed” interpretation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
According to the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, state and local governments gave the most amount of funding to public schools for students in kindergarten through 12th grade.
In Fiscal Year 2022, federal funding accounted for 14% of K-12 education funding. State and local funding provided 87% of K-12 funding.
In fiscal 2024, the Department of Education spent $18.8 billion for schools with large numbers of poor, neglected, delinquent, and other “educationally disadvantaged” students, as well as $55 billion in COVID-19 grants to pre-K programs, elementary, and secondary schools, according to Pew Research Center.
Should the Department of Education strip states of federal funding, it could force cuts during the 2025-2026 school year.
