Closing the DEI Loophole in Missouri Higher Ed
In electing Governor Kehoe and sending him Conservative supermajorities in the legislature, Missouri voters were very clear about their opposition to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
They sent Conservatives to Jefferson City with a mandate to eliminate DEI.
Missouri has been aggressively removing DEI from public institutions.
But even after state leaders take action, DEI can sneak in through the back door. We’ve covered the Missouri Supreme Court’s refusal to eliminate DEI courses for Continuing Legal Education.
Our public universities find themselves in a similar situation.
Missouri banned DEI. National accrediting agencies require it.
That means that Missouri’s public universities have to choose between violating state law and risking their accreditation.
That’s where the Keep Accreditation About Academics Act comes in.
The bill is simple: accrediting agencies can no longer demand that schools undertake DEI practices that conflict with Missouri law.
The problem: DEI requirements can be enforced through accreditation
Accreditation is not just a formality. For most colleges and universities, accreditation affects credibility, transferability, and access to key systems that students and families rely on.
When accreditors embed DEI expectations into their standards, it creates a compliance trap for schools in states that are restricting DEI mandates. Missouri schools can end up facing contradictory demands from two directions:
- State law banning DEI mandates
- Accrediting agencies requiring DEI frameworks anyway
What Accreditor-Mandated DEI looks like in practice
DEI is often presented as harmless branding. In reality, it represents a set of mandatory ideological requirements that shape curriculum, hiring, and campus policy.
- – University of Washington: A hiring committee admitted to ordering candidates for job offers based on their race, violating the University’s own anti-discrimination policy.
- – UConn: University leadership required a course in ‘Anti-Black Racism.’
DEI mandates put schools at odds with federal civil rights law. They should not be tolerated.
Missouri’s direction: eliminating DEI mandates
Missouri’s executive branch has already set a clear tone: state government should treat people equally and should not fund DEI initiatives as a separate ideological program.
After pressure from in-state Conservatives, Missouri State University eliminated its DEI programs.
The fix: Keep Accreditation About Academics Act (SB 1192)
Missouri’s SB 1192 is designed to close that loophole by blocking accreditors from using DEI practices as a factor when dealing with Missouri institutions.
This is the core principle: Accreditation should be about academics. Teaching, learning, student outcomes, and institutional quality should be the standard.
Not DEI bureaucracy.
Not ideological compliance.
Not backdoor mandates that override Missouri law.
Andy Bakker
Executive Director
Liberty Alliance USA