Trump administration opens DEI investigation into Arizona State University

The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating claims that Arizona State University is illegally discriminating against some students by operating surreptitious diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

In a press release, the DOJ said the Title VI investigation was prompted by viral videos “indicating ASU denied equal treatment to students based on race, color, or national origin — while attempting to hide its discriminatory practices from federal scrutiny.”

The department’s Civil Rights Division will look at whether ASU discriminated against any students through “DEI policies in admissions, recruitment, scholarships, tutoring, and the provision of educational support.”

The announcement comes months after Accuracy in Media, a conservative watchdog group, published secretly recorded videos of ASU employees discussing DEI programs at the university.

The State Press reported that those recordings, made by operatives using hidden cameras, showed faculty members from the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions talking about ways they continue to promote inclusivity while following rules designed to block DEI policies.

Accuracy in Media accused the university of violating Trump administration directives attacking diversity, equity and inclusion programs and newly adopted Arizona Board of Regents policies.

Protect the Public Trust, a government watchdog founded by a former Trump administration official after Democratic President Joe Biden took office in 2021, filed a complaint based on the videos.

The Department of Justice did not respond to requests to clarify whether the Accuracy in Media recordings are the “viral videos” that led to its new investigation.

An ASU spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.

However, a university spokesperson previously denied the university engaged in discrimination in a statement to the State Press after Accuracy in Media published its recordings.

“Not only would doing so violate Arizona Board of Regents and ASU policy, but ASU has since 2010 operated under a state constitutional provision that prohibits preferential treatment or discrimination on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in public education,” the spokesperson said.

Since Trump returned to office last year, his second administration has attempted to force universities to drop programs and initiatives connected to DEI, a catch-all term for programs that promote diversity and inclusion in education and the workplace.

Schools that kept the programs faced threats by the administration to remove federal funding, a major revenue source for public universities like ASU.

In March, the Department of Education opened an investigation into 52 universities and colleges, including ASU, over allegations they used “racial preferences and stereotypes in education programs and activities.”

In August 2025, a judge struck down U.S. Department of Education guidance designed to eliminate DEI programs, and the Trump administration abandoned an appeal earlier this year.

But the administration continues to crack down on the programs, arguing they amount to illegal discrimination, in violation of federal law and a Supreme Court decision that found race-based admissions policies are unconstitutional.