The U.S. Department of Education building in Washington last fall. Jose Luis Magana/Associated Press

A recent letter from the U.S. Department of Education told states they will lose federal funding if they don’t eliminate programming related to diversity, equity and inclusion within 14 days.

Maine’s K-12 schools and universities receive hundreds of millions in federal money annually and the state’s department of education says it is assessing the legal implications of the latest federal order. The biggest impacts could be on the university level, but it’s not yet clear what those impacts might look like.

The letter, signed by the federal education department’s acting assistant secretary for civil rights, Craig Trainor, was published on the social media platform X by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, and is the latest of the billionaire’s series of cost-cutting actions within the federal government.

“Educational institutions have toxically indoctrinated students with the false premise that the United States is built upon ‘systemic and structural racism’ and advanced discriminatory policies and practices,” the letter reads. “Proponents of these discriminatory practices have attempted to further justify them — particularly during the last four years — under the banner of ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ (‘DEI’), smuggling racial stereotypes and explicit race-consciousness into everyday training, programming and discipline.”

Trainor went on to say that any discrimination on the basis of race is illegal and cited Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, the 2023 Supreme Court case that overturned affirmative action. He said that ruling can be broadly applied to any educational program that treats people differently based on race, including scholarships, financial aid, administrative support, housing and graduation ceremonies.

He wrote that the department will “vigorously enforce” this interpretation of the law for any educational institutions that receive federal funds and that any institutions that fail to comply will “face potential loss of federal funding.”

The letter tells states they have 14 days to comply — which would give districts until next Friday, Feb. 28.

Since he took office in January, President Donald Trump has issued several executive orders and policies targeting DEI programs in education and government. Some schools have responded by canceling events or pulling DEI pages from their websites. Experts have said the latest letter’s interpretation of the Fair Admissions v. Harvard case falls outside the norms of the law and will likely be met with legal challenges.

A spokesperson for the Maine Department of Education confirmed Wednesday that the agency had received the notice, but didn’t say exactly how it could impact local schools.

“The Maine DOE is reviewing this letter and monitoring its implementation, which will include assessing any forthcoming legal guidance from the (U.S. Department of Education) and its interaction with existing state of Maine law,” Director of Communications Chloe Teboe said.

WHAT FUNDING COULD BE AFFECTED?

Maine K-12 schools received $250 million in federal funding this school year. That money includes support for multilingual learners, rural students and special education across multiple programs, including money from the Elementary and Secondary Education Act known as title funding, and the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act, called IDEA.

Several school districts contacted by the Press Herald said they were unsure how the directive would affect them because they hadn’t received guidance from the state’s education department. Some said they did not believe it would have any direct impact, while others said they were keeping an eye on the potential loss of federal funding.

“I know that our district receives nearly $2 million in federal funding, so we will obviously be paying close attention to this,” Augusta Superintendent Michael Tracy said.

The bigger hit could be coming to Maine’s public university system, which relies more on federal funding and received $226 million during the last fiscal year. That includes $137.8 million in student financial aid (like Pell Grants, student loan funding and federal work-study) and $87.9 in grants and contracts for things like research, and federal appropriations. 

The University of Maine system also houses several DEI offices, like the Office for Diversity and Inclusion at the University of Maine in Orono and the President’s DEI Council at the University of Maine at Augusta. Higher education institutions across the country have been reassessing the names or missions of similar programs in light of the new administration’s crackdown.

The system shared Trainor’s letter on its “Federal Transition” page last Friday, and said “UMS is reviewing the letter and will issue relevant internal guidance if necessary.” Spokesperson Samantha Warren said in an email Thursday that Maine’s public universities never consider race, color or national origin in admissions or financial aid.

“While we do not discriminate and have confidence we are operating in a manner that is consistent with the Supreme Court’s Students for Fair Admissions ruling and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, in response to the department’s directive, we are undertaking a review of our policies, practices and programs, and additionally await further guidance,” Warren said.

As a public institution that relies on public funding from the federal government, the system will continue to comply with relevant laws and policies, Warren said.

Kennebec Journal Staff Writer Emily Duggan and Sun Journal Staff Writer Frida Zeinali contributed to this article.