Maryland judge strikes down Education Department DEI memos

A federal judge in Maryland on Thursday struck down two Education Department actions aimed at ending diversity, equity and inclusion programs in U.S. schools and universities, ruling the department violated the law by threatening to cut federal funding from institutions that maintained DEI initiatives. U.S. District Judge Stephanie Gallagher, appointed by President Donald Trump in 2019, sided with plaintiffs who argued the department overstepped its authority and breached procedural requirements in issuing two memos that targeted race-conscious policies across education.

The decision stems from a February lawsuit brought by the American Federation of Teachers and the American Sociological Association. The plaintiffs challenged two Education Department memoranda that directed schools and universities to end all “race-based decisionmaking” and warned that failure to comply could result in losses of federal funding and potential prosecutions under the False Claims Act. The court found the measures unlawful not for their policy aims but for the manner in which they were framed and implemented, saying the department could not push its policy views at the expense of constitutional rights.