Professor: UI diversity offices to close

According to a University of Idaho professor, diversity offices on the UI campus have already been informed they must close based on orders from state officials.

Sydney Freeman Jr. posted on Facebook early Monday morning that the Black/African American Cultural Center he helped establish on campus has been closed “based on the instruction of the Idaho State Board of Education and due to pressure of members of the Idaho State Legislature.”

He added that the UI Women’s Center, Office of Multicultural Affairs and the LGBTQA Office were also “targeted for closure.”

“My heart goes out to all of the leaders, community partners, and students who invested their time, energy, and talents in sustaining and advancing these units to ensure all minoritized populations maintained spaces where they could have a sense of belonging,” Freeman. wrote.

Freeman published his post days before the Idaho State Board of Education plans to talk about its new Diversity, Equity and Inclusion policies for higher education. A proposed SBOE resolution would “ensure that no central offices, policies, procedures, or initiatives are dedicated to DEI ideology.”

UI spokesperson Jodi Walker did not share more details with the Moscow-Pullman Daily News other than stating that the university is following the guidance of the SBOE, which meets Wednesday in Boise.

Other staff members the Moscow-Pullman Daily News reached out to said they were not yet ready to comment publicly on the issue.

Efforts by the state to restrict DEI programs on campus prompted the UI Faculty Senate and the Associated Students of the UI to pass resolutions of their own declaring their support for these programs and expressing concerns over the direction the state is taking.

According to the State Board of Education’s DEI policy, student clubs that focus on social issues or personal identity characteristics are still allowed. Also, it should not affect scholarships or grant opportunities.

During a Dec. 3 Faculty Senate meeting, UI Provost Torrey Lawrence was asked if there will still be ways for students to request services currently provided by programs like the Women’s Center, for example.

Lawrence responded, “absolutely yes.”

“That is our primary focus in whatever we do going forward and trying to meet their needs,” he said.

Kuipers can be reached at akuipers@dnews.com.