More than half of Arizona’s public and charter school districts have signed a letter sent by the U.S. Department of Education. It requires them to acknowledge they’ll follow federal civil rights law and avoid the use of diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
The letter was sent to state leaders earlier this month asking them to certify their compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, adding that any violations — including the use of DEI programs to advantage one’s race over another — is impermissible.
State Superintendent Tom Horne forwarded the letter to Arizona schools, noting they risk losing federal funding if they don't comply.
The Arizona Department of Education says about 350 out of 658 public and charter school districts have signed so far.
Governing boards for Tucson Unified and Tempe Union High School districts voted to sign this week.
Ahead of Tempe's vote, board member Armando Montero said that certain terms used in the letter like "illegal DEI" are undefined and "thus the district is unable to attest compliance with such."
Montero added that the district provides assurances that it has policies and procedures in place to ensure compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.
In a statement, a Tucson Unified spokesperson said "Tucson Unified's history of being under court supervision in a desegregation case until very recently means that the district takes its commitment to creating an educational environment free of unlawful discrimination very seriously. The governing board affirms that it will not operate programs that violate Federal Civil Rights laws. TUSD would not have been released from court supervision had it not been able to convince a federal judge of that very commitment."
Other districts, like Mesa Public Schools have votes scheduled for future governing board meetings.
Schools have until April 24 to sign.
