Staff Editorial

President Donald Trump’s administration is going after higher education, and for that matter, education in general. That’s not, nor should it be, a surprise to anyone who has been paying attention.

What is surprising is how eager institutions seem to be to capitulate to his demands.

Columbia University was the first to bend the knee on Friday. Trump threatened to cut $400 million in federal funding if the university didn’t meet his demands: Ban masks, hire security officers authorized to arrest students and put its Middle East, South Asian and African studies departments under new supervision.

On March 20, the University of California announced they would stop requiring the use of diversity statements in hiring, which have long been a sticking point for conservatives who claimed that such statements served as loyalty oaths to an ideology that limited diversity in academia.

The administration also said on March 19 that they would suspend $175 million in federal funds to the University of Pennsylvania based on their approach to transgender athletes competing in women’s sports. The claim was centered on the university’s support of Lia Thomas, a transgender woman on its women’s swim team, according to The New York Times.

All of this spells trouble for the independence of higher education — not that the federal government will encroach on it, but that administrations may be too eager to cede to its demands.

This White House is the ultimate litmus test for many colleges and universities who for years have touted their commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and, most importantly freedom of expression on their campuses.

The threats of funding cuts over policies that the administration considers verboten has, for now, only affected large universities. But the administration is only about two months into a four-year term. Barring any major, destabilizing event, Trump and his visiers are only getting started, and threats to smaller colleges and universities may be just a few more months or years over the horizon.

Duquesne University has repeatedly made commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion — not as some kind of buzzword, but as a real practice that helps people from underrepresented communities get a foot in the door and climb the social and economic ladders.

Our university’s mission statement is to serve God by serving students through commitment to excellence in education, profound concern for moral and spiritual values, maintaining an ecumenical atmosphere open to diversity and serving the church, the community, the nation and the world

If and/or when the White House comes knocking and makes demands from Duquesne, we need the university to stand up and stick to its mission. If they can find a way to get Columbia to fold, they can figure out how to break Duquesne.