Federal Judge Overturns Anti-DEI Grant Cuts

A federal judge has vacated a Trump-era U.S. Department of Education directive against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. The directive, issued in February 2025, was used to justify terminating over 100 federal teacher training grants worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

U.S. District Judge Angel Kelley ruled on September 17 that the anti-DEI directive and the related grant terminations were unlawful. The decision came in a lawsuit filed by eight states challenging the cuts. Judge Kelley found the department's actions were "arbitrary, capricious" and violated federal administrative law.

The Directive and Immediate Cuts

The contested directive, titled "Eliminating Discrimination and Fraud in Department Grant Awards," was issued on February 5, 2025. It ordered agency staff to review grants to ensure federal dollars do not fund discriminatory practices, including in the form of DEI. The department claimed such practices could violate civil rights law.

Just twelve days later, on February 17, 2025, the Education Department announced massive cuts to two key programs: the Teacher Quality Partnership (TQP) and the Supporting Effective Educator Development (SEED) grant programs. The agency said it cut grants for programs that trained teachers using divisive ideologies. Specifically, it cited workshops on dismantling racial bias and activities requiring educators to take responsibility for systemic inequities.

Impact on States and Teacher Pipelines

The lawsuit was filed by the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, and Wisconsin. California alone lost at least $148 million in funding, according to state Attorney General Rob Bonta.

These grant programs were designed to address teacher shortages by developing pipelines in rural and urban communities. Some focused on filling hard-to-staff positions in math and science and had been shown to improve teacher retention rates. Withdrawing critical funding without warning and in the middle of a grant cycle causes immediate and lasting harm to institutions, communities, and students, said Cheryl Holcomb-McCoy of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education in a statement.

Legal Reasoning and Reaction

In her order, Judge Kelley criticized the department's rushed process. The Department’s hasty implementation of the Directive over less than two weeks, the magnitude of the effects of the termination, as well as the lack of evidence of reasoned decisionmaking in the Administrative Record leave serious doubts as to the Department’s choice to adopt the Directive, she wrote.

Education Department Press Secretary Savannah Newhouse defended the original policy to K-12 Dive. Taxpayer dollars should support preparing teachers for meaningful student learning, expanding the pipeline of high-quality teachers, and retaining top talent, not funding divisive ideology or racial preferences, she said. The department had not stated whether it would appeal the decision as of September 21.

California's Attorney General celebrated the ruling. Since Day One, the Trump Administration has pursued an anti-education agenda, Rob Bonta said on September 18. Once again, a court said no. The court's order effectively nullifies the 2025 directive and the grant terminations made under its authority.