Anti-DEI letter sparks re-evaluation of Rider’s courses

By Jake Tiger

In light of recent federal communications declaring race-based educational offerings unconstitutional, a Rider dean emailed department chairs requesting they begin examining their course offerings, while Rider’s faculty union believed the dean’s email pressures professors to revise their curricula.

The U.S. Department of Education sent out a “Dear Colleague” letter on Feb. 14 ordering the end of all race-based education, programming, activities, opportunities and financial aid within 14 days, with federal funding possibly being pulled if the new regulations are not reflected by the two-week deadline in all American colleges, universities and K-12 schools.

Rider, a private institution, receives federal funding and College of Arts and Sciences Dean Kelly Bidle’s email signals that changes could be made to ensure the university complies with the new demands.

In the Feb. 17 email to department chairs from Bidle said, “At this time, I want to request that you all begin to carefully examine your courses, particularly their names and their catalog descriptions. I encourage whatever efforts you may want to make to ensure the integrity of the course remains, while perhaps not drawing specific attention to key terms that may violate this deeply troubling executive action.”

Bidle’s email to chairs concluded, “…in short, don’t sacrifice your values, but don’t put an unnecessary target on your back.”

Bidle declined an in-person interview with The Rider News on Feb. 18, but scheduled an interview for Feb. 21 and offered a statement over email, reading, “I have also told [faculty members] that their choices regarding whether or not to look at their courses for changes, or to maintain DEI-related themes was entirely theirs to make. I myself remain committed to continuing the work of educating our students, and protecting our values that include creating a sense of belonging for all.”

Rider Provost DonnaJean Fredeen said to The Rider News on Feb. 18 that Bidle’s message was intended to promote “preparedness” across the university in the event major changes need to be made.

“We need to be prepared and there are things we can be doing now, so if or when the time comes that it is an issue for private institutions as well, we can pivot quickly, and that’s what Dean Bidle was really saying to the chairs,” Fredeen said. “Start thinking about it. … Let’s look at what courses we’re offering, and let’s start doing preparatory work so we can react quickly if we have to react.”

Despite Bidle’s message and recent actions on the federal level, communication professor David Dewberry said he did not plan on reworking his courses, and he believed his colleagues would continue to exercise their “academic freedom.”

In response to the dean’s message, Rider’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors sent an email to its members on Feb. 18, saying Bidle’s message “encourages faculty to preemptively remove potentially sensitive material from their courses given the current political atmosphere. We believe it is crucial to uphold academic freedom and resist anticipatory obedience.”

In an interview with The Rider News on Feb. 18, AAUP President Quinn Cunningham said she was unsurprised by the dean’s message with CAS faculty having already approached her regarding their curricula and the state of education in America. 

“There’s a fear, and a potentially legitimate fear,” she said. “I don’t know what to expect in terms of how quickly [the DOE] might make their way down to a Rider-level college or university.”

Dewberry, a current member and former president of the AAUP, teaches communication theory and touches on topics such as white privilege and muted-group theory, which both fall under the umbrella of race-conscious education. 

“There are some people who are concerned with the politics of our world, and rightfully so,” he said, “but, there are also some people who are willing to do what scholars have done throughout the history of our profession, and that’s stand up for academic freedom potentially at great costs.”

Rider has championed its diversity initiatives in recent years and many of its courses deal directly with race and adjacent topics, such as Latinx in the 21st century, managing workforce diversity and race, class and gender in contemporary American society. The university also offers a multicultural studies minor.

Fredeen was unsure what advice to offer the faculty currently teaching such courses, saying, “I would have to really think about that … which is why taking the time now is so very important, so when the time comes, it can be a thoughtful response and not a reactive response.”