UW-Madison to “sunset” its main DEI division, move programs under different umbrella

MADISON, Wis. (WMDX) – UW-Madison is planning to “sunset” its main DEI division as inclusion efforts have become a target for state Republicans over the last couple years. 

UW-Madison’s Division of Diversity, Equity, and Educational Achievement helps support about 5 percent of the student body. 

Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin announced that it’ll move under the umbrella of the Division of Teaching and Learning, and the Human Resources department. 

Mnookin said the initiatives from the DDEEA will still exist, and no student scholarships will be impacted. 

“Student cohort and support programs previously housed in DDEEA, including the Center for Educational Opportunity, First Wave, McNair Scholars, Mercile J. Lee Scholars, Office of Experiential Learning and NDGNS, PEOPLE, and POSSE,” Mnookin said in a statement. 

However she said a “small number” of staff members will be laid off. 

“I believe these changes will allow us to serve many more students with an even greater array of resources,” the statement read. “It will also set us up to be able to develop better flows of information to support success, to develop a strong student navigator system, and to report on our progress.”

Diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives are a major talking point for Republicans on both the state level and the national level. President Donald Trump has threatened funding cuts to universities over diversity programs. When pushing for an $87 million cut to the UW System weeks ago, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said there’s “too much political correctness” on campus, although he didn’t say how the cuts would fix that problem.