A DEI ranking could help push back against Trump’s crackdown

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On 23 January, three days after being sworn in again as US president, Donald Trump signed an executive order calling for the enforcement of civil rights laws to combat what it terms “illegal” diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices.

The order requires federal agencies to create compliance guidelines for universities, focusing on race-neutral admissions and other DEI practices. It also designates colleges receiving federal financial aid as subcontractors, subjecting their hiring practices to strict anti-discrimination criteria.

Experts have expressed concerns about the chilling effect this order could have on universities. Some institutions are already moving to pre-emptively comply by dismantling or reframing DEI-related programmes (some, such as the University of Texas System, already did so last year). And critics highlight the potential for misinterpretation and misuse of the order’s broad language, predicting lawsuits and further state-level actions to reinforce the federal directive.

What seems certain is that this apparently deliberate attempt to dismantle essential support systems for underrepresented groups is likely to exacerbate inequities within the sector. And what starts in the US often spreads around the globe.

Yet DEI remains vital. For much of the 20th century, for instance, women were excluded – formally or informally – from many professions, under the assumption that they lacked the necessary physical or intellectual capacities. But these perceptions were gradually reshaped by policies aimed at increasing women’s participation, including mandatory quotas and positive discrimination for management positions in EU-listed companies. And evidence emerged that gender-diverse teams often outperform homogeneous ones, particularly in creativity and decision-making, illustrating that equity and excellence can coexist.