The University of North Texas has formally announced the dismantling of its Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access Office following the passing of Senate Bill 17. It's the first Texas university to do so.
SB17 bans DEI programs from public universities and goes into effect in January 2024. As the bill made its way through the Texas House and Senate, some universities began to place their DEI programs on hold.
UNT President Neal Smatresk announced the dissembling of the office in an email to students Tuesday morning. The email read that following the retirement of Joanne Woodard, vice president of the office, the division "will be dissolved."
"As a university committed to the education of Texans, we will remain steadfast in living our values and serving our diverse community," Smatresk said in the email.
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Woodard is retiring from her position on Oct. 1. Earlier this year, UNT announced a pause on all new diversity, equity and inclusion practices.
The UT System announced that they were pausing DEI policies at all 13 campuses in February but have not announced closures. Texas A&M recently announced that they were reexamining their DEI practice in June but also have not announced a closure.
