Universities attempt to thread the needle amid growing public pressure against DEI

The ouster of Claudine Gay, who until recently served as Harvard University's president, has sparked a national debate about diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in higher education.

Colleges and universities across the country are faced with different incentives for altering their approach to DEI, with some existing in states banning the racial promotion and hiring model and others encouraging its expansion.

But while DEI programs on campus were under scrutiny before Gay's resignation, the controversy at Harvard has sparked a national conversation about the value of such initiatives.

"These so-called places of 'higher learning' only bow...