WASHINGTON D.C. – Today, a broad coalition of over 60 civil rights, education advocacy, and human rights organizations issued a unified call for colleges and universities across the United States to publicly reaffirm their commitment to equity, inclusion, student success, and academic freedom by pledging support for a recently released Foundational Values for Higher Education compact.

The compact, drafted by the Legal Defense Fund, National Women’s Law Center, and Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, comes in response to ongoing federal pressures to eliminate diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility on campuses across the country. The coalition sent the compact to over 80 colleges and universities around the country, including the nine universities targeted with the original funding pledge from the Trump administration. In the coming months, the coalition plans to engage university leaders and student and alumni groups to garner support for the compact.

Foundational Values for Higher Education asks colleges and universities to commit to, among other things, increasing access to opportunity for all students, faculty, and staff; establishing admissions criteria that do not perpetuate inequality; and preventing and responding effectively to discrimination and harassment.

“The strength of higher education lies in its commitment to democratic ideals, including preparing students from every walk of life to meaningfully participate in society,” said Amalea Smirniotopoulos, Senior Policy Council and Co-Manager of the Equal Protection Initiative at LDF. “We are calling on institutions to stand firmly on the side of equity and to reject efforts that would marginalize students, faculty, and staff, especially those from Black communities and other communities of color.”

“In the face of federal pressure to dismantle inclusion and equity on college campuses and to strip away fundamental freedoms enshrined in our democracy, we call on every institution of higher learning to fight for their students and faculty, and safeguard their academic independence,” said Shiwali Patel, Senior Director of Education Justice at the National Women’s Law Center. “Our students and faculty deserve to work and learn in environments where their constitutional freedoms will be protected, and where they are treated with dignity and fairness, regardless of their race, sex, religion, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic.”

“In a time of unprecedented pressure, colleges and universities have an opportunity to stand strong in defense of the ideals that underpin our democracy and the values that drive opportunity,” said Michael Pillera, Director of the Educational Opportunities Project at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “Instead of buckling to the pressure of those that seek to diminish, colleges and universities should value everyone within their school communities; increase access to opportunity; address their own actions that perpetuate inequality; support robust academic freedom, debate, and discussion; create supportive environments where students don’t just exist, but thrive; and protect students and faculty from harassment, discrimination, and other harm.  Now is the time for colleges and universities to hold strong and stand boldly in solidarity with students, staff, and their whole school communities.”

The compact has been endorsed by Advocates for Youth, the Human Rights Campaign, National Partnership for Women & Families, League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), and over 60 others. A full list of endorsements can be found here.