Alabama students and educators are still weighing the impacts of a new ban on diversity, equity and inclusion programs in public colleges.

Gov. Kay Ivey signed SB129, known as the “divisive concepts” bill, into law March 20. The law becomes effective Oct. 1, 2024.

“Alabama lawmakers passed legislation that turns back the clock on the progress in the past 70 years to support students, faculty, and staff from a diverse range of backgrounds,” Paulette Granberry Russell, CEO of the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education, said in a statement to AL.com.

“It is especially shameful that this legislation is being enacted in a state with a deep history of racial discrimination and forced integration of education.”

The wide-ranging legislation asks for sweeping changes or cancellations to state agencies and public colleges that currently fund DEI offices and programming. Auburn University and the University of Alabama’s Tuscaloosa and Birmingham campuses support more than $3 million each in DEI budgets.

The law bans any program that “advocates for a divisive concept.” It also would prohibit higher education institutions from allowing individuals to use a restroom that is different from their sex as assigned at birth.

A ‘chilling effect’

Civil rights groups, professional organizations and educators say the law could have a negative impact on student wellbeing, employee retention and hiring, and even research and business opportunities.

“We’re watching very carefully because there’s going to be this short-term impact but also long-term impact,” said Heidi Tseu, associate vice president for national engagement at the American Council on Education. “And certainly the concern is that this is a chilling effect on student opportunities.”

Nationwide, similar bans have been proposed or enacted in at least 22 states, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education. But institutions have responded in varied ways.

In Florida, one institution fired all its DEI staff, while another simply changed their titles.

It is not clear yet whether Alabama’s law will force some state colleges, which support a combined $16 million in diversity spending, to lay off staff.

According to the state’s legislative services agency, it is up to individual state agencies, local boards of education and college administration to decide how to discipline employees who violate the law. There is no civil or criminal penalty for noncompliance, but the legislature can withhold funding from institutions that don’t comply.

Tsue said it’s important for local colleges to fully understand the law – including what it does and does not prohibit – and set clear guidelines on how they will move forward.

“The continued priority needs to be that students from any type of background and all walks of life are being welcomed into our campus communities,” she said. “And that their needs get supported, their talents get supported and nurtured and then they’re positioned to succeed after they graduate to serve as the next generation of leaders. That is the thing that needs to continue to be the central focus.”

In an interview with AL.com, Benard Simelton of the Alabama NAACP called the legislation a “devastating bill for equality in the state of Alabama.”

A few years ago, the state NAACP started working with Auburn’s DEI office after hearing concerns from minority faculty members about the tenure and promotion process, Simelton said. He will be meeting with college officials in the next few days to discuss next steps, he said.

He also said the chapter is looking into options for federal funding of DEI programming, either through grants from the U.S. Department of Education or Department of Justice.

The NAACP recently urged athletes not to go to Florida colleges due its DEI ban, which passed in 2022. Simelton said his chapter is considering a similar message.

The NCAA has not weighed in on whether the law will impact athletic teams, which are required to complete regular DEI reviews.

“I’m just afraid we’re going to see a tremendous reversal,” Simelton said, referring to policies like affirmative action that have helped African Americans and other minority groups gain access to education and employment.

‘Just heartbreak’

In Montgomery this month, students and advocates pleaded with lawmakers to halt the bill. Now, many are concerned how colleges will respond.

“This unjust and inhumane bill ignores the will of the people and threatens years of progress toward racial and social justice and LGBTQ+ rights for generations to come,” said Jerome Dees, Alabama policy director for the SPLC Action Fund. “Students and workers value diversity, equity and inclusion in their schools and workplaces because it makes us all more safe.”

Akeisha Anderson, policy and advocacy director of Alabama Arise, said she benefited from DEI programming during her time at the University of Alabama. The new law, she said, won’t enhance free speech; it will only take away spaces for students of color to feel safe and supported on campus.

From her interactions with lawmakers, she said she’s skeptical that colleges will be able to find workarounds to support employees and students who might be affected.

In a committee meeting last month, Democrats proposed an amendment that would ensure DEI offices would only be prohibited if they promoted so-called “divisive concepts,” but Republicans struck it down.

Anderson said she asked the bill’s sponsors to bring the amendment to the House floor for a second vote, but was turned down.

“The fact that people like Ed Oliver, who carried the bill in the House, were against that amendment tells me that it is very intentional to make sure that they are stomping out what they perceive to be something that is dangerous or leading to people being ‘woke,’” she said.

Current college students say the law could not only take away affirming spaces on campus, but it could also damage career prospects and academic opportunities.

Sean Atchison, president of the University of Alabama’s Queer Student Association, said he was able to get a prestigious Boren fellowship and Fulbright scholarship because of his involvement in QSA and his research on queer communities abroad.

“My initial gut reaction is just heartbreak,” he said. “The whole reason I’ve been involved in this from the beginning is because of these programs that helped me and they’ve made me the person I am… And realistically, all of those opportunities are on the chopping block.”

His organization, he said, is encouraging the university to enforce the ban in the “least horrible way they can” and find ways to continue to support student groups and resources for student success.

“When we say this is Governor Ivey’s ‘segregation today, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever,’ that’s not an exaggeration,” he said. “That’s literally the impact of the bill: It is an execution of George Wallace’s vision in the 21st century.”