EXCLUSIVE: University Officials Attack ‘The Whites’ While Illegally Continuing DEI, Complaints Allege

Three Ohio universities have faced complaints after administrators were filmed bragging about continued illegal diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) discrimination at their schools and blaming white people for making it a problem.

Hidden camera footage filmed by Accuracy in Media (AIM) at Ohio State University, Kent State University and the University of Cincinnati shows staff members determined to evade state and federal guidelines by making cosmetic changes to conceal but continue such DEI. Some have even been caught blaming “white men” or “white people” for making this deception necessary. Protect the Public’s Trust (PPT) filed federal complaints against each of the schools on Monday, in documents shared exclusively with the Daily Caller News Foundation.

At Kent State, a woman charged with preparing future teachers told an undercover AIM investigator that the Republican drive to reform education and end discriminatory practices was simply to “keep white men in power.” (RELATED: Leftists Tell Conservative Students to Kill Theirself and Use Kirk Assassination Footage to Threaten Event)

“That’s what it’s all about,” Jennifer Walton-Fisette said. “If we cut education, we can continue down that path. So that’s the ultimate goal.”

Walton-Fisette admitted that the school – and particularly the College of Education – is continuing its DEI efforts.

“One thing I can say about Kent State University and our teacher education program: They are all focused on diversity, equity and inclusion,” Walton-Fisette said in the AIM video. “It’s not about taking a Trumpian approach, it’s about removing the buzzwords and having to be more careful about how you talk about equity and inclusion.”

She also suggested that the pro-DEI campaign extend beyond Kent’s campus, saying that even at the state level, “they’re all about diversity, equity and inclusion.”

“Kent State University is committed to upholding state law, including full compliance with Senate Bill 1,” a university spokesperson told DCNF. “Simply put, Kent State complies with the laws of the State of Ohio. The employee in the video does not speak on behalf of Kent State as an institution and appears to be largely expressing her personal views.”

A university official explains that the DEI is still on campus despite the bans. (Screenshot / Media clarification)

An Ohio State administrator echoed these concerns about the need to treat white people equally in a separate AIM video.

“The ‘whites’ are there too, not just the underrepresented,” Melissa Newhouse, administrative assistant in the dean’s office, said in the video in reference to the school’s newly renovated multicultural center. “They also brought privileged people there.”

Lawmakers who support anti-DEI laws, Newhouse said, “want white Americans there.”

“Due to the law, we had to change signage and centers,” Newhouse said, according to AIM. “We are very diverse and [the administrators] We’re extremely passionate about this and we’re doing what we can. They’re always doing things.

However, these forced changes to programs and signage are in name only, the complaint details, as administrators continue to promote the prohibited policies. At the same time, Ohio State continues to benefit from “a lot of educational equity and access grants” funded by Apple, Newhouse said in the video.

When she was later confronted by AIM investigators, Newhouse denied the statements and claimed the video of her making them must have been fake.

“It’s AI. It must be. It’s not me saying that,” she insisted.

University staff member denies saying DEI was still on campus despite bans. (Screenshot / Media clarification)

A university spokesperson told DCNF that Ohio State followed the law and was reviewing the AIM video. “The individual in the video has no control over academics, programs or other university programs,” the spokesperson said.

In another AIM video, Katherine Jones, director of the sociology program at the University of Cincinnati, admitted that discussions and critical analyzes of “race, class, gender, sexuality, intersectionality” appear “in almost all of our courses.”

“[I]In the sociology department, this constitutes a central element of our program. I mean, we can’t really remove it. It’s part of what we talk about and what we teach,” Jones told an undercover investigator. “The administration has said over and over again that this would not impact our curriculum… We’re still teaching the same things we’ve always taught and we’re prioritizing these types of analyses.”

The University of Cincinnati did not respond to DCNF’s request for comment.

Ohio state law prohibits DEI practices at universities, particularly the existence of departments or job descriptions and scholarships that rely on racial characteristics. President Donald Trump’s first executive order also prohibits federal funding for such initiatives.

The TPP calls on the Departments of Education, Justice, Health and Human Services to investigate and properly “discipline” these universities.

“Too many of our nation’s institutions of higher education appear to be obsessed with continuing these discriminatory policies,” TPP Director Michael Chamberlain told DCNF. “Even in the face of state laws, federal orders, and Supreme Court decisions, they choose to devote their energy to hiding, evading, and concealing what they are doing rather than changing course. Perhaps the attention of the American public and watchdog agencies will cause them to reconsider.”

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