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On Wednesday, Indiana’s Republican governor signed a controversial bill diminishing diversity, equity and inclusion programs and tenure protections in the state’s public higher education institutions—including through mandating a shift in focus to what Republican lawmakers call “intellectual diversity.”
The Indiana Conference of the American Association of University Professors and a group called the University Alliance for Racial Justice had been pushing for a veto.
“Faculty who value diversity, justice and equity will run the risk of reprimand or even termination for speaking out in their classrooms on racism and discrimination,” the Alliance wrote in a letter signed by the Indianapolis Urban League, the Indiana NAACP State Conference and numerous other groups. “The bill describes procedures by which students may in Orwellian fashion turn in a professor guilty of promoting diversity without giving equal time to other perspectives (such as racism?).”
Senate Bill 202 will leave it to campus boards of trustees to determine what “intellectual diversity” means in individual faculty members’ disciplines, to gauge whether professors have delivered it and to decide how much they should be punished if they fail.
Board members will be able to delegate the review of faculty members to others. But the boards must pass policies to deny promotions and tenure to faculty members if, “based on past performance or other determination by the board,” they are “unlikely to foster … intellectual diversity.” Additionally, “intellectual diversity” will be considered in post-tenure reviews, which the law will newly require at least every five years.
Further, colleges and universities will have to consider “intellectual diversity” and other related criteria—including whether the faculty member “introduced students to scholarly works from a variety of political or ideological frameworks that may exist within the curricula”—when deciding whether to give bonuses or renew faculty members’ contracts. That means the law will impact nontenured faculty members, too.
It also establishes a process for students and employees to complain that faculty members aren’t meeting the criteria; mandates reporting of the complaints to the state’s legislature; and requires universities to submit their DEI expense information to lawmakers.
In an emailed statement to Inside Higher Ed, Governor Eric Holcomb wrote, “I have consistently supported and encouraged diversity, inclusivity and respect for all. SB202 establishes a foundation at our publicly funded universities to ensure freedom of expression for students and faculty.” Holcomb added, “I have faith in our public universities to faithfully implement this law to foster the successful growth and intellectual vibrancy of academia while protecting the rights of all individuals.”
