Loyola Stands Strong on DEI Policies in Face of Executive Actions

Loyola’s Office of Institutional Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is continuing to operate as normal in the face of a national trend toward removing DEI policies following an executive order from the Trump Administration targeting the initiatives. 

Trump signed an executive order Jan. 21 titled “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity,” which ended all DEI programs in the federal government and required the Attorney General recommend termination of similar programs in the private sector — including institutions like private universities — according to the White House website.

Several large companies, including Google, Meta and Amazon, have also begun rolling back their diversity programs in response to Trump’s executive order, The Associated Press reported.

Despite this wider shift, Chief Diversity Officer Dominique Jordan Turner said the university plans to maintain their DEI programs because they create equal access to positions tied to the university’s Jesuit values. 

“Our mission calls us to do this work,” Jordan Turner said. “That’s one thing people need to remember about being at a Jesuit Catholic institution. We have a 150-year history focused on social justice and working to support those at the margins, so DEI is not just a program that was created after the murder of George Floyd. This is very much connected with our mission. No matter who is in office, it doesn’t move us away from doing our mission.” 

Jordan Turner said the OIDEI was initially launched in November 2021 when she was hired.

“Loyola has always done DEI work but there was no centralized strategy for Institutional impact,” Jordan Turner wrote in an email to The Phoenix. “Our office was charged with creating a ‘north star’ for all of our campuses.”

Elena Yacoben, a second-year theoretical physics and applied math major who’s the Chair of the justice committee in SGLC, said student government is currently in the early stages of working on an initiative to encourage the university to find new ways to affirm their commitment to DEI initiatives. 

Yacoben said since they are in the early stages, it’s not completely clear yet how it will manifest, but she is hopeful it will help students feel  more confident in the university’s mission and focus on inclusive decision making. 

“We haven’t heard anything about the university trying to actually change any of this stuff but our main goal is we would like the reaffirmation,” Yacoben said. “Because this is happening on a national scale — that won’t happen here, and that Loyola recognizes that.”

Overall, Yacoben said she’s happy with everything Loyola does to foster an inclusive environment for students on campus, citing efforts such as the diversity statements which are included in every class syllabus, the free pads and tampons available to students on the first floor of campus buildings and the outreach programs hosted by the Center for Diversity and Inclusion. 

Jordan Turner said she believes the term DEI has been weaponized, and she said many people fall short of understanding what the programs are working to accomplish. 

Jordan Turner said she personally connects with students who are feeling anxious about how DEI will impact their ability to begin their career. 

“I feel it,” Jordan Turner said. “I’m a Black woman in America so I absolutely — I feel it. And personally, it makes me angry because I have worked really hard. And for somebody to look at me and assume I was given this job and I didn’t earn this job is a slap in the face to all of the hard work that has happened by people who look like me, who share my experience. It’s infuriating to see this work kind of bastardized in this way.”

Jordan Turner said she encourages students to find their community and lead with empathy when they’re feeling helpless or angry about what’s happening. 

Kailani Moore, a third-year political science and Spanish double major and chief diversity officer to administrators in SGLC, said she has felt fear among the student body regarding a future without DEI initiatives.

“I have heard students’ fears about that,” Moore said. “I think a lot of that has to do with the uncertainty around this new administration and what that’s going to mean for higher education.”

Moore said she has heard concerns from students and initially had fears herself about the status of CDI on campus, and even the status of her role within SGLC, but wants to emphasize those resources are secure. 

“I have a lot of solace now knowing that administrators are also working hard to make sure that DEI is safe on Loyola’s campus and that our Center for Diversity and Inclusion isn’t going anywhere,” Moore said. “Those resources are still going to be there for students.”

For her and the university, Jordan Turner said DEI is about seeing students as a person and then determining what they need individually, rather than treating the student body as a whole.

Ryhah Rizvi, a first-year multimedia journalism major, is an intern this semester in the OIDEI, and said she operates as a connection between the university administration and the student body. She said her goal is to “capture the climate of diversity around campus” by attending events and talking to students. 

Jordan Turner said OIDEI doesn’t work directly with students, but instead collaborates with faculty to find the best ways they can support students in their educational work.

In curating the environment on campus, Jordan Turner said her office works hard to select the most qualified candidates for positions and provide students with faculty who will give them the support they need. 

“Diversity is far greater than just race and gender issues,” Jordan Turner said. 

Moore said although she thinks there’s always room for improvement, overall she’s happy with how Loyola provides resources to students and communicates them. 

“From what I’ve seen and who I’ve worked with so far, administrators are always very willing to hear the student perspective and what students have to say,” Moore said. 

Jordan Turner said when a new search committee is formed to begin the process of hiring a new faculty member, the team is assigned a Racial justice, Equity, Accessibility, Diversity and Inclusive Excellence coach. 

These READI coaches help ensure the university is practicing inclusive hiring practices, according to Jordan Turner.

Rizvi said she finds the national removal of DEI procedures to be an excuse to restrict minority individuals from accessing positions.

“I think this is a move that is disguised as something that’s supposed to be non-restricting — like ‘Oh, we’re allowing for a more even playing field,’ but really what I’m seeing is that this is just a tactical move,” Rizvi said.

Moore said she finds DEI on university campuses to be especially important because college is all about being exposed to new cultures, people and experiences. 

“I feel like any person going to a university should feel included in the space that they’re attending class,” Moore said. “Inclusion is so important to feel like you have a sense of belonging.”

Rizvi said she isn’t concerned with getting a job in the field of journalism as a person of color because she feels they’ll still be seeking diversity, but she’s aware of how it will affect other people trying to start their careers.

Rizvi said she was initially drawn into applying for the internship with OIDEI because she has long had an interest in subjects relating to diversity. 

“I think just seeing the words diversity, equity and inclusion in a major office of a university definitely drew me in because those are things I value too,” Rizvi said. “And also because I want to be a part of any type of even small scale social justice that I can be a part of.”

Rizvi said she appreciates the university showing their support for DEI policies and staying true to their values. 

“I am really glad I chose this university because of its willingness to welcome with open arms and just allow for students to celebrate themselves in the culture they’ve been born into and their own backgrounds,” Rizvi said. “It makes me happy.”

In the near future, Rizvi said she plans to begin attending more student events to observe various cultures and the way students from different spaces around the university are feeling about DEI policies being removed. 
Jordan Turner said it’s easy to become scared by reading the information about DEI currently flooding the news.

“The media will have you believe that everyone is jumping ship, and that is not the case,” Jordan Turner said.