Backlash Builds: UVA’s DEI Deal with Trump DOJ Draws Fire from Faculty and Virginia Lawmakers
On October 22, 2025, the University of Virginia (UVA) struck a controversial four-page agreement with the Trump administration’s Department of Justice (DOJ), pausing five ongoing federal investigations into the school’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices in exchange for UVA adopting the DOJ’s stricter interpretation of anti-discrimination laws. The deal—hailed by DOJ Civil Rights head Harmeet Dhillon as a step toward “equal opportunity and fairness”—requires UVA to eliminate race-based considerations in admissions, hiring, and programming, while committing to quarterly compliance reports to the DOJ. No fines or external monitors were imposed, and UVA emphasized it preserves academic freedom. Yet, just weeks later, the pact has ignited fierce criticism from law school faculty, the broader university senate, and Democratic state lawmakers, who decry it as a capitulation that invites federal overreach and erodes institutional autonomy. As of November 9, 2025, protests and calls for reversal continue, framing the agreement as a “surrender” in the Trump era’s broader assault on higher education.
The Deal: From Compact Rejection to DOJ Settlement
The saga began in early October 2025, when the Trump White House offered UVA (along with eight other research universities) the “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education”—a carrot-and-stick proposal promising preferential federal funding access in return for sweeping reforms, including banning race, ethnicity, or gender in admissions, mandating SAT/ACT scores, capping international students at 15%, and defining sex biologically. UVA rejected the Compact on October 17, hours after a rally of over 1,000 students, faculty, alumni, and locals on the Lawn demanded defiance.
This followed months of pressure: UVA’s president, James E. Ryan, resigned in June 2025 amid DOJ threats to withhold funding, visas, and aid if DEI wasn’t dismantled—moves critics linked to complaints from groups like America First Legal, founded by Trump aide Stephen Miller. Interim President Paul Mahoney, a former UVA Law dean, then negotiated the DOJ deal, which critics say is “worse than the Compact” for embedding Trump-era views on civil rights law as UVA policy, potentially enabling perpetual oversight.
The agreement binds UVA only “to the extent” DOJ guidance remains judicially valid, but it halts probes into alleged “euphemistic” DEI rebranding and ensures no less favorable federal treatment than peers. UVA’s Faculty Senate and Student Council had urged rejection of both the Compact and any similar settlement, citing threats to free speech and state sovereignty.
Faculty and Law School Outrage: “A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing”
UVA’s academic community has mobilized swiftly against the deal, viewing it as a betrayal of post-Charlottesville commitments to equity and a chilling precedent for federal meddling in curricula and research.
- Faculty Senate and AAUP Chapter: On October 3, the Senate passed a 60-2 resolution labeling the Compact “dangerous” and likely illegal under state and federal law, a stance extended to the DOJ pact. The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) chapter echoed this, warning of “micromanagement” that could slash liberal arts departments or limit race-conscious holistic reviews—despite Supreme Court nuances in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard. Past AAUP President Walt Heinecke called it a “wolf in sheep’s clothing,” predicting legal challenges and faculty exodus.
- Law School Voices: UVA Law professors, including those who knew Dhillon as an alumna, have been vocal. In a November 5 open letter signed by 45 faculty (including deans), they accused the deal of “gross overreach” that politicizes education and undermines the school’s 200-year mission. Associate Professor Matthew Hedstrom noted unprecedented faculty unity: “Faculty famously like to disagree, but not on this.” Critics like UCLA’s Eddie R. Cole argue the vague terms leave a “crack in the door” for DOJ to probe teaching on race or identity.
Broader faculty fears include tuition hikes to offset lost scholarships (as federal caps could force cuts) and chilled speech, with one anonymous professor telling The Cavalier Daily: “This isn’t compliance; it’s coercion.”
State Lawmakers’ Revolt: Threats to Funding and Calls for Reversal
Virginia’s purple politics have amplified the divide, with Democrats framing the deal as an assault on state control—especially poignant after Ryan’s resignation, which they blamed on Trump “bullying.”
- Key Democratic Critics: On October 7, Sens. Scott Surovell, Ghazala Hashmi, and Mamie Locke warned UVA leaders of “significant consequences in future Virginia budget cycles” if the Compact was signed, a threat now extended to the DOJ deal. In a November 4 letter to Mahoney, Surovell and Del. Katie Kime Callsen demanded reversal, arguing it cedes “unprecedented federal control” over a state flagship. Hashmi, the Lieutenant Gov.-elect, slammed Trump’s interference in October testimony: “This isn’t oversight; it’s overreach into Virginia’s institutions.” Maryland’s Sen. Chris Van Hollen joined, calling it a “surrender” that endangers other schools.
- Republican Support vs. Broader Backlash: Gov. Glenn Youngkin praised the pact as a “fair deal” restoring meritocracy, but even some conservatives worry about precedents for federal strings on state funds. The General Assembly’s Democrats, holding a slim majority post-November elections, may leverage budget talks in 2026 to enforce accountability.
Broader Implications: A Precedent for Higher Ed Under Trump?
This clash highlights Trump’s escalating campaign against “woke” campuses—expanding from private Ivies to public flagships like UVA, UCLA, and George Mason—via DOJ probes and funding leverage. Alumni like 2023 grad Alex Day urge collective resistance: “Schools should come together, not fold individually.” With UVA’s Board of Visitors (heavily donor-influenced) backing Mahoney, reversal seems unlikely short of litigation or legislative action.
As vigils and petitions swell—over 5,000 signatures on a faculty-led reversal drive—the deal tests UVA’s motto, Aut Vincam (I will conquer). For now, it’s a flashpoint in the fight for academic independence, with eyes on whether other holdouts like UC Berkeley follow suit or litigate. Check UVA’s federal info page for updates.