Weekly Briefing: How public colleges are responding to DEI bans

Some colleges are making drastic changes. Others aren't. ADVERTISEMENT [Weekly Briefing Logo]( You can also [read this newsletter on the web](. Or, if you no longer want to receive this newsletter, [unsubscribe](. What changed after anti-DEI legislation passed in Texas and Florida? 📣 We’re experimenting with the Weekly Briefing’s format, highlighting three top stories. If you have suggestions or feedback, [let me know here]( or send me an email: fernanda@chronicle.com. - The Chronicle surveyed 137 public colleges in Texas and Florida about changes made after DEI bans. Texas and Florida were the first two states to pass legislation that banned diversity, equity, and inclusion on college campuses. About 40 percent of public institutions in Texas and Florida responded to inquiries from our Erin Gretzinger and Maggie Hicks. They found that campuses are changing inconsistently. Some — like the University of Florida, which recently terminated 13 full-time staff members — are reacting dramatically. Other institutions aren’t changing at all. Plenty are somewhere in between, refocusing their programming or moving staff to other departments. [Erin and Maggie’s story]( shows colleges’ different interpretations of the sweeping laws. - What happens when colleges pay up for good “press” coverage? Glance through CIO Views magazine and you’ll find leadership profiles that sound like LinkedIn bios. The stories are positive, and the publication often features higher-education leaders. One missing detail? The stories are paid for, a salesperson for the magazine confirmed. But none of the stories are labeled as advertisements, and they’re presented as independent, journalistic work.[Our Francie Diep examines]( the magazine’s practice and the central conflict: Colleges want good publicity and are willing to pay thousands for positive stories, but does this practice run contrary to their truth-seeking mission? - The University of Florida is investigating if professors “interfered” with a Western-civilization center’s ability to establish its curriculum. The university’s Hamilton Center for Classical and Civic Education, which focuses on teaching students the Western canon and fostering civil discourse, has been a source of tension on campus since it was approved by the Republican-controlled state legislature in 2022. An internal email recently obtained by The Chronicle shows that at least one department chair was asked by the dean’s office to sign a letter saying that his department believes the curriculum “will provide a unique opportunity for students … and will complement our department’s offerings nicely.” Meanwhile, some faculty members have expressed concerns about the center’s supposed rightward tilt and the potential for replication with existing departments. For their part, administrators don’t believe the center is getting a proper welcome. [Our Emma Pettit has the story](. ADVERTISEMENT NEWSLETTER [Sign Up for the Teaching Newsletter]( Find insights to improve teaching and learning across your campus. Delivered on Thursdays. To read this newsletter as soon as it sends, [sign up]( to receive it in your email inbox. Lagniappe - Read. You remember the QAnon Shaman, Jacob Angeli-Chansley. Maybe you don’t: He sat in the presiding officer’s chair with a staff and a megaphone during the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, face painted and wearing a coyote-tail headdress and buffalo horns. After his release from federal custody, he sat down with [Harper’s Magazine](. The profile of Angeli-Chansley examines how the MAGA movement gained the support of the “consciousness-raising, om-chanting, sound-healing, joint-toking, crystal- and chart-reading crowd, the long-haired hippies” once associated with the left. - Listen. Speaking of [spiritual connections]( listen to Alice Coltrane’s 1971 [Carnegie Hall Concert]( available for the first time 53 years later. (The Nation, Spotify) —Fernanda SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHRONICLE Enjoying the newsletter? [Subscribe today]( for unlimited access to essential news, analysis, and advice. Chronicle Top Reads THE REVIEW | ESSAY [The Coddling of the American Undergraduate]( By Rita Koganzon [STORY IMAGE]( Colleges want to exercise total social control over students’ lives. That’s bad for everyone. SPONSOR CONTENT | Chapman University [An Invitation to the Universe]( A collaboration between a Nobel-prize winning physicist from Caltech and an artist and department chair from Chapman takes viewers on a warped journey through wormholes and the birth of the universe. THE REVIEW | ESSAY [Your Pay Is Terrible? You’re Not Alone.]( By Kevin R. McClure [STORY IMAGE]( Higher education has a compensation problem. DIFFICULT DISCUSSIONS [Why Do Some Campus Events About the War in Gaza Succeed While Others Spark Controversy?]( By Erin Gretzinger [STORY IMAGE]( The Chronicle analyzed more than 60 events to better understand how — and why — they turned out the way they did. 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