Butler responds to DEI order

Recently, Donald Trump’s administration warned of funding cuts to universities over diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). On Monday, Feb. 17, the Department of Education (DOE) issued a Dear Colleague letter to universities and colleges explaining that they had 14 days to comply with the president’s order. During this timeframe, universities and colleges could no longer use race as it relates to decisions concerning admissions, employment and scholarships. 

Since the Civil Rights Act of 1964, DEI programs have been part of diversity efforts to ensure fairer representation. 

Butler does not have a specific DEI office or officer, so the college did not need to remove any positions. Bill (William D.) Rinkenbaugh said that the college reviewed their programs that they offer to ensure that they fall within the guidelines that were issued in the form of a Dear Colleague Letter from the Office of Civil Rights. As an open admission institution, the college does not discriminate against any individual wishing to enroll at Butler CC. The college will remain an institution that recognizes the diverse population of our students and will continue to provide an environment where all students feel welcomed and are encouraged to accept others regardless of their background, according to Rinkenbaugh. 

“...our focus on the College Community Council is to ensure all students have access to our academic programs and services and that there is no discrimination against any individual student or student organization,” Rinkenbaugh said. “We want to ensure that students have resources available to them if they begin to struggle with issues while continuing as a student at Butler. Our desire to positively impact both their social and emotional learning and to provide counseling services for students that are dealing with serious mental health concerns, or students that are just feeling overwhelmed and need someone to visit with about their specific situation.” 

Rinkenbaugh is a member of the College Community Council, which was previously called the Inclusion Council.  

The college has maintained their timeless institutional values of Quality, Caring, Integrity and Service since the mid-1990’s, which applies to all faculty, staff and students to ensure a positive educational environment. Some “buzz” words within the college’s working documents of diversity and inclusion have been removed, but the intent of the College Community Council is to support the timeless institutional values of quality, caring, integrity and service. 

The rebranding that involved removing buzz words would attract external agencies while re-emphasizing the work that Butler CC will continue to do to ensure that all students have access to quality programs and services and that no one will be discriminated against for any reason. 

Rinkenbaugh encourages students to become a part of the College Community Council, so they can be a part of the conversation and have a direct say in the issues that students experience. 

“This is your chance to be a part of Council efforts to provide community-building training workshops to faculty, staff, and students; organize events involving all student communities; and heightening awareness of the College’s timeless institutional values as they are applied in the learning environment,” Rinkenbaugh said. “We also actively participate in the development of student leadership and seek to network with any student organization, where recognizing all perspectives and concerns is a top priority.”  

For more information on resources or how to participate, contact Jenna Gannon at jgannon2@butlercc.edu 

Along with The Dear Colleague letter, there have been some reported concerns over what this may do to cultural events. According to Juliana Kim with NPR, “The U.S. Department of Education has launched investigations into 52 universities in 41 states, accusing the schools of using "racial preferences and stereotypes in education programs and activities." 

In February, for instance, the Butler Black Student Association (BSA) along with the Harold Smith Cultural Series featured to guest speakers, Aaron Profit and InJoy Fountain, in honor of Black History Month is highlighted as a cultural event. The programming that was offered earlier this month and, in the future, will always be open to all students, faculty and staff, according to Rinkenbaugh. He does not see any of their organizations eliminating offering these types of programs when they become available. 

“Right now, my response is that it’s too early to determine what will happen,” Rinkenbaugh said. “At the present time, our student organizations are open to all students. It doesn’t matter who they are, where they come from, or their respective organizational goals. The Dear Colleague Letter that we received was highlighting discrimination from admission or from returning to Butler Community College. The membership of these organizations is open to all students.” 

Jenna Gannon, a research analyst in the department of Institutional Research at Butler CC, explained that the office does not report information specifically for the purposes of DEI. They do report on and analyze demographic information as needed by their stakeholders and as directed by the Kansas Board of Regents (KBOR) as well as the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). They use these and other data to support the decision-making processes within the college as well as comply with regulations.   

“As a researcher, it is my job to look at the facts and provide analysis to help our students and the college be successful,” Gannon said. “Research ethics are central to that, and this type of information is essential for the college to make informed decisions.” 

They have several public-facing dashboards that include some of the demographic information. Their public records can be found on their Data Hub (www.butlercc.edu/datahub). The Fall Census dashboard is probably the most applicable and the KBOR website also has a lot of resources showcasing some of the information available to the public, that collection is called KHEStats. IPEDS also has a lot of information, but it can get very overwhelming. 

“So far, I have not seen direct implications for our day-to-day analytics and reporting requirements,” Gannon said. “Only time will tell the full ramifications of all of the executive orders.”