Nebraska GOP lawmaker wants to reshape higher ed with DEI, tenure bans

LINCOLN — Several University of Nebraska-Lincoln and University of Nebraska at Omaha students expressed concerns Monday about a pair of bills that aim to reshape higher education in the state. 

“Our university system should be something we invest in,” said UNL student Carter Grier, representing the Association of Students of the University of Nebraska. “Not something we undermine.” 

College students, faculty and some university officials testified against Legislative Bills 551 and 552 during an afternoon hearing of the Education Committee. The proposed legislation, both filed by State Sen. Loren Lippincott of Central City, would ban diversity, equity and inclusion offices (LB 552) and dismantle tenure for faculty members (LB 551). Tenure provides a layer of protection for college faculty members from being dismissed and is often seen as a safeguard of academic freedom.

While similar legislation was proposed a year ago in Nebraska, the latest attempt comes as both UNL and UNO have closed DEI offices in response to the Trump administration’s continuing crackdown on DEI programs with executive orders as higher education becomes a renewed front in the nation’s culture wars. 

The hearing on the bills followed Friday’s announcement that the U.S. Department of Education is investigating UNO and 44 other universities for “race-exclusionary practices” in graduate programs. University officials said UNO “will cooperate” with the federal probe. Nebraska, if LB 552 becomes law, would join other Republican-led states that have passed laws banning DEI initiatives in higher education. 

Lippincott’s attempt to remove tenure last year was postponed indefinitely. This time, he said a revised version of the bill would promote more “transparency and accountability” and not an attempt to “stifle” academic freedom. 

Faculty members said they are already judged by merit and that the bill would have a negative impact on recruiting and retaining new professors and staff. They also said it could lead to political intimidation of academic pursuits and harm the university’s academic reputation.

‘There is a movement around the country’

Lippincott and State Sen. Danielle Conrad of Lincoln, an Education Committee member, had a tense exchange on both bills. Conrad pointed to the “Exon decision,” a decades-old Nebraska Supreme Court case that limits how much the Legislature can interfere in the university’s policies, leaving that to the elected University of Nebraska Board of Regents.

Lippincott pushed back, pointing to recent decisions by Trump’s Education Department as to why the bill should become law. Conrad asked Lippincott if LB 551 attempts to discourage free expression and academic freedom. 

“Yes,” Lippincott said.

LB 551, as written, would replace academic tenure with annual performance evaluations and minimum standards of good practice for faculty members. Lippincott pointed to several states, including Texas and Florida, with similar legislation. Republicans around the county have pushed legislation to remove tenure, but none has gone into effect, or if passed, the bills have been watered down to avoid a complete ban. 

LB 551 would ban tenure. 

“There is a movement around the country to do some tune-ups on the tenure program, so it’s more merit-based,” Lippincott said during the LB 551 hearing. 

Vice President J.D. Vance has called for an aggressive “attack” on universities around the country if “any of us want to do the things that we want to do for our country and for the people who live in it” during a speech at the National Conservatism Conference in 2021. 

During the hearing, students, faculty and advocates said banning DEI on campus would hurt students, professors and staff from marginalized groups and make students and professors move to different states with tenure and DEI programs. 

The NU system has dealt with controversy around DEI in previous years, including criticism from Gov. Jim Pillen, a former NU regent, and multiple state senators. UNO and UNL closed DEI offices this year, partly to comply with Trump’s Education Department memo that told schools and universities that the institutions could lose federal funding over “race-based preferences” in admissions, scholarships and other areas of student life.

Those orders have been challenged in federal lawsuits for being too vague and violating the free speech rights of educators. 

NU president says university follows law

Lippincott also has proposed bills that could infuse more religion into K-12 schools. State Sen. Dave Murman of Glenvil, the Education Committee chairman, filed similar legislation to ban DEI offices last year. Lippincott said the bill is needed because “DEI undermines merit and academic excellence.”

“DEI offices create an environment of ideological conformity,” Lippincott said during the LB 552 hearing. “That is groupthink.”

Lippincott made statewide headlines over his recent opinion column meant for local newspapers criticizing DEI programs, which spilled over onto the legislative floor last month when some lawmakers demanded an apology. Lippincott told the Nebraska Examiner that his only regret was not elaborating on his central point in the column.

“We have determined that LB 552 is heavily weighted against people of color, women, the disabled and the poor,” said Dewayne Mays, president of the NAACP’s Lincoln chapter. “It’s an attempt to limit free speech and other rights in postsecondary state institutions and efforts to express those freedoms that allow us to reach out potentially.”

Dr. Jeffrey Gold, president of NU, referred to the Education Department memo and said the university “takes the requirement outlined by the Department of Education … very seriously” and is complying with the agency’s new guidelines. Gold said the university believes that no additional regulations are needed.  

Committee member State Sen. Margo Juarez of Omaha asked Lippincott what his goal was with LB 552. 

“Is your message [that] diversity is not quality?” Juarez asked Lippincott. “That’s what I’m hearing.” 

Lippincott responded by saying, “No. I think that each one of us has infinite worth as individuals.”

The committee took no immediate action on the bills.