On July 29, 2025, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi circulated a memorandum to all federal agencies with guidance regarding what constitutes unlawful discrimination. Specifically, the guidance honed in on the applicability of federal antidiscrimination laws to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs.
The Memorandum
The DOJ’s memo, titled “Guidance for Recipients of Federal Funding Regarding Unlawful Discrimination,” begins by reiterating that entities receiving federal funds must comply with all applicable civil rights law, including Titles VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The guidance then provides a non-exhaustive list of discriminatory policies and practices that would violate such antidiscrimination laws.
First, the DOJ clarified the unlawfulness of granting preferential treatment based on protected characteristics. This includes race-based scholarships or programs preferential hiring or promotional practices, and access to facilities or resources based on race or ethnicity.
Second, the guidance emphasizes the prohibited use of proxies for protected characteristics – criteria selected because they correlate with or are used as substitutes for protected characteristics. Examples of unlawful proxies include “cultural competence” requirements, geographic or institutional targeting, “overcoming obstacles” narratives, and “diversity statements.”
Third, the DOJ addressed the impermissibility of segregation based on protected characteristics. This includes race-based training sessions and segregation in facilities or resources (such as a “BIPOC-only study lounge”).
It also encompasses implicit segregation through program eligibility, including race-based “diverse slate” policies in hiring, sex-based selection for contracts, and race- or sex-based program participation.
Finally, the guidance focused on prohibited training programs that promote discrimination or hostile environments. This includes, for example, a “school district requir[ing] teachers to complete a DEI training that includes statements stereotyping individuals based on protected characteristics – such as ‘all white people are inherently privileged,’ ‘toxic masculinity,’ etc.”
The memo notes that engaging in any unlawful practices could result in the revocation of federal grant funding. It also emphasizes that federal funding recipients may be liable for discrimination if they knowingly fund the unlawful practices of contractors, grantees, or other third parties.
Accordingly, the DOJ encourages the following best practices: ensure inclusive access, focus on skills and qualifications, prohibit demographic-driven criteria, document legitimate rationales, scrutinize neutral criteria for proxy effects, eliminate diversity quotas, avoid exclusionary training programs, include nondiscrimination clauses in contracts to third parties and monitor compliance, and establish clear anti-retaliation procedures and create safe reporting mechanisms.
Bottom Line For Schools
Given the potential consequences for failing to adhere to the above guidance, schools should carefully review all policies and programs that may conflict with the DOJ’s interpretation of federal antidiscrimination laws. KingSpry will continue to monitor this and other guidance related to civil rights, school policies, and federal funding.
