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A federal judge in Maryland has overturned two Trump administration directives aimed at eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion programs in U.S. schools and universities, ruling the Education Department violated the law by threatening to pull federal funding from institutions that maintained such initiatives.
U.S. District Judge Stephanie Gallagher, appointed by President Donald Trump, issued the decision Thursday after granting a motion for summary judgment filed by the American Federation of Teachers and the American Sociological Association. The two groups sued in February, challenging the department’s anti-DEI guidance as unlawful.
Background on the Dispute
The case focused on two department memos that ordered schools and universities to end all “race-based decision-making” or risk losing federal funds. The directives, part of a broader administration effort to roll back race-conscious policies, expanded on a 2023 Supreme Court decision that barred race from being considered in college admissions.
The Trump administration argued the ruling should apply to all aspects of education — including financial aid, hiring and classroom conduct — framing DEI programs as discrimination against white and Asian American students.
One memo, issued on Feb. 14, warned that any use of race in educational decision-making violated federal civil rights law. A second, in April, instructed state education agencies to certify they were not using “illegal DEI practices,” threatening penalties under the False Claims Act for violators.
Court’s Ruling and Reasoning
Judge Gallagher found that the Education Department’s guidance represented a “sea change” in regulation and had not gone through legally required procedures.
“It initiated a sea change in how the Department of Education regulates educational practices and classroom conduct, causing millions of educators to reasonably fear that their lawful, and even beneficial, speech might cause them or their schools to be punished,” she wrote. Gallagher stressed she took no position on whether DEI policies were “good or bad, prudent or foolish, fair or unfair.”
The ruling orders the department to withdraw the memos.
Reaction from Both Sides
Democracy Forward, a legal advocacy group representing the plaintiffs, hailed the decision as a major win.
“Threatening teachers and sowing chaos in schools throughout America is part of the administration’s war on education, and today the people won,” said Skye Perryman, the group’s president and CEO.
In a statement, the Education Department said it was disappointed but insisted the decision would not hinder its enforcement of Title VI protections.
“Judicial action enjoining or setting aside this guidance has not stopped our ability to enforce Title VI protections for students at an unprecedented level,” the agency said.
Broader Context and Next Steps
The Trump administration’s push to eliminate DEI programs has drawn fierce opposition from education groups and some states, who see the guidance as government overreach and a form of censorship. The American Federation of Teachers argued that the memos imposed “unclear and highly subjective” limits on schools, forcing educators to choose between free speech and federal funding.
Thursday’s decision leaves the administration without its primary tool for pressuring schools on DEI policies, but legal experts say further appeals are likely.
