KENTUCKY SENATE MAJORITY CALLS ON SACSCOC DELEGATES TO VOTE NO ON NEW DEI POSITION STATEMENT
Senate Majority Whip Wilson, Floor Leader Thayer and Sen Tichenor appeal to delegates
FRANKFORT, KY (December 5, 2023) – The following may be attributed to Senate Majority Whip Mike Wilson, District 32, Senate Majority Floor Leader Damon Thayer, District 17, and Senator Lindsey Tichenor, District 6, in response to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges vote on a new DEI Position Statement.
In response to the news that the SACSCOC may vote to amend its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Position Statement, Senators Wilson, Thayer, and Tichenor state the following:
“Kentucky's public colleges and universities should strive to hold all students attending our institutions of higher education with intrinsic value in who they are without discrimination. Each public institution should be held accountable to provide equal opportunity in accordance with Kentucky's constitutional obligation to educate without regard to the immutable characteristics or qualities that naturally bring about diversity onto our campuses.
“Unfortunately, DEI is a misnomer that does not contribute to the equal opportunities and inclusive environments our post-secondary institutions need to create a 21st-century workforce. The DEI movement across our college campuses is often not the force that ensures an inclusive environment or holds accountable those who discriminate in higher ed, but often fosters the exact opposite of what its acronym stands for. Students and faculty often find DEI initiatives to be thinly veiled ideological standards that stifle or stigmatize opposing ideas. SACSCOC should instead remain focused on the intellectual rigor and academic success of the universities it accredits.”
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Access archived footage of 2023 Regular Session meetings at ket.org/legislature/archives.