(Center of the American Experiment) — With the nationwide push to eliminate Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programs from higher education, we thought it would be good to survey Minnesota state colleges and universities to find out how many employees work in this august field. The result? Minnesota’s 12 four-year public colleges and universities employ 139 people working in DEI paid for by a combination of taxes and tuition. Our survey did not include the state’s smaller two-year colleges and technical schools, which would undoubtedly increase the total.
As we did earlier with state government agencies, we relied for the most part on the colleges themselves to report their DEI staff. Some colleges ignored our request, so we did our own research to fill in the gaps. The 139 DEI staff we identified is definitely an undercount.
Not surprisingly, the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus led the way with 85 DEI staff across 10 different departments. Mankato State University stood out among the rest of Minnesota’s schools with 15 DEI staff supporting around 15,000 students, including a Vice President of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and an Assistant Vice President of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. You have to wonder what they do to stay busy.
Here is the list of DEI employees at Minnesota’s four-year public colleges and universities.
College presidents have to wonder if President Trump’s recent executive order promising to cut off federal funding for organizations that continue their DEI programs will reach Minnesota (why wouldn’t it?). The order calls for an end to DEI programs and announced new guidance would be forthcoming:
“Within 120 days of this order, the Attorney General and the Secretary of Education shall jointly issue guidance to all State and local educational agencies that receive Federal funds, as well as all institutions of higher education that receive Federal grants or participate in the Federal student loan assistance program …”
Trump’s executive order prompted an immediate response from the U of M Law School, as they announced a pause in the search to replace their assistant dean of DEl. The law school dean sent an email to staff stating:
“As you are all aware, in the last few weeks the national landscape for higher education has shifted. In response, the University is reassessing many programs, including those related to diversity, equity, and inclusion.”
President Trump really is causing the landscape to shift if the U of M Law School is reacting to his executive orders.
DEI on campus
The stated goal of DEI on campus is to create a more accommodating environment for students of various races, religions, and sexual orientations. A similar trend has taken over Minnesota state government. In September 2024, we reported that the Walz administration employs 173 DEI workers, creating a target for budget cuts from the newly empowered House Republican Caucus.
DEI workers at universities primarily focus on emotionally supporting groups they believe to be oppressed, such as blacks, Hispanics, women, and the LGBT community. They create so-called “safe spaces” for these groups among the student body and the faculty. The LinkedIn profile of one DEI worker says, “I am deeply passionate about promoting access, equity, and support for historically minoritized students. My career has been dedicated to guiding and empowering students through their educational journeys, while also centering joy, care, and love.” (College of Biological Sciences Student Services SS Pro 3-Student Engagement and Development, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities)
DEI also makes this effort among university faculty. For example, Metropolitan State University has Employee Resource Groups (ERG) for their faculty to feel better about themselves. These include the LGBTQIA+ Employee Resource Group, the Black Equity Convening Group, the Latiné Employee Group, the Disability, Chronic Pain, Chronic Illness ERG, and the Environmentalist ERG. These groups seem to be an effort to create a space for employees of a certain demographic separate from the rest of the faculty. For example, the description of the LGBTQIA+ Employee Resource Group says:
“Hello guys, gals, and nonbinary pals. Metro State’s LGBTQIA+ Employee Resource Group Meets on the first Thursday of the month from 12–1 p.m. on Zoom. This group is a safe space for queer and trans employees to build community and organize around issues impacting LGBTQIA+ students and staff at Metro State.”
DEI practices on campus remove people from others who are seen as hostile to their way of life in order to celebrate their differences.
Supplier diversity
Another DEI practice within Minnesota higher education is supplier diversity. The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities has an Office for Supplier Diversity (OSD). The OSD website says:
“The Office for Supplier Diversity engages with businesses owned by women, BIPOC, and disabled individuals, and with other underserved businesses, to facilitate their integration into the University supply chain. By providing support to underserved local businesses and connecting them with university purchasers, the Office for Supplier Diversity leverages the University’s resources to build powerful economic partnerships in our communities.”
Tuition and taxpayers pay for the salaries, benefits, and office space of these DEI staff. A Minnesota version of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) might target these 139 DEI employees at around $100,000 each to save nearly $14 million!
Sample DEI job descriptions:
University of Minnesota Twin Cities Gender and Sexuality Center SS Pro 3-Student
Advocacy and Support
In this role, I lead the education, training, and professional development programming efforts regarding gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation concerns with and for the University community. I also coordinated all unit communications and the evaluation and assessment of the GSC’s programs and services. In this role I worked collaboratively to address a wide span of education needs, including but not limited to trans-inclusive medical and healthcare; LGBTQIA+ concerns for social workers; advising LGBTQIA+ learning abroad students; promoting mental, physical, and sexual health for LGBTQIA+ communities; and a variety of other topics staff and faculty request to enhance the way they support University students and employees.
University of Minnesota Twin Cities Multicultural Center of Academic Excellence SS
Pro 3-Academic Program Services
Collaborate with UMN structures to provide faculty development opportunities for fostering diverse perspectives into the curriculum and adopting inclusive teaching practices. Develop and implement a plan for identifying and engaging with strategic systemwide UMN stakeholders to increase the visibility and impact of the full MCAE Faculty Support Services. Provide coaching and support to campus partners who are interested in developing their capacity for diversity, equity, and inclusion.
This post was co-written by American Experiment intern Nathan Fish, who also provided all of the research.
This article was originally published by the Center of the American Experiment.
Bill Walsh
Bill Walsh is the Communications Director at Center of the American Experiment.
