National Association of Scholars Enthusiastically Endorses Senate Bill 1

A Cleveland television station buried the lead when it covered a demonstration against DEI rollbacks at Akron City Hall last week.

The real story?

Their video showed only eight protestors showed up.

That’s what you call making the case for the other side.

As public support for DEI tumbles and President Trump bans the radical ideology from the federal government, the wind is at our backs as we lead the nation in reforming our public institutions of higher education.

The prestigious National Association of Scholars is powerfully praising Senate Bill 1, my legislation to banish DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) programs and to restore free speech on campus. 

“We enthusiastically endorse SB 1 and hope that it will swiftly become law,” the association said in a statement released on January 29.

“SB 1 will do an extraordinary amount to depoliticize Ohio’s public higher education system, strengthen intellectual diversity, and restore its accountability to Ohio policymakers and citizens.”

I am honored and humbled by the plaudits the association placed upon   me and Rep. Tom Young, the author of companion legislation House Bill 6, saying we have “demonstrated idealism, practicality, and grit.” 

It was very kind of the N.A.S. to observe, “We are grateful that Sen. Cirino has battled so consistently and so well to improve Ohio’s higher education system.”

I am also grateful the association recognized the work we have already done establishing five independent civics centers at our universities   spearheaded by Senate President Rob McColley and me:

“We would add that Ohioans can now look at the success of Ohio SB 117 as another reason to look favorably on SB 1. Ohio SB 117, which established independent academic centers at five of Ohio's public universities, received knee-jerk opposition from the academic establishment. Yet the bill passed, and now Ohio’s centers are up and running, joining their colleagues doing similar work around the country. Ohio’s universities are settling down to help these new establishments do the best possible work.”   

We created the Institute of American Constitutional Thought and Leadership within the University of Toledo’s College of Law to better prepare law students through civil discourse and rigorous inquiry, regardless of their philosophical viewpoint.

We also created the Salmon P. Chase Center for Civics, Culture, and Society at the Ohio State University, as well as similar civic engagement centers at Miami University, Wright State University, and Cleveland State University.

In its statement the association observed:

“The opposition to Ohio SB 1 also is a fuss that will die down when the bill is passed into law. Ohio’s public colleges and universities can and will implement SB 1’s provisions strengthening liberty, nondiscrimination, and depoliticization. The effects of SB 1 are not trivial—thank heavens!—but it is a predictable and practical reform.” 

I think that opposition is already fading away. Public support of DEI was dropping significantly even before President Trump began moving to eliminate all such programs from the federal government, calling them “dangerous, demeaning and immoral.” 

President Trump issued an executive order on the day he took office notifying “all employees of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) offices that they are being placed on paid administrative leave effective immediately as the agency takes steps to close/end all DEIA initiatives, offices and programs.”

That same day, President Trump ordered a review of all higher education institutions with DEI programs receiving federal funding or grants, or that participate in the student loan program.

A week later, the president signed executive orders banning DEI initiatives in all branches of the U.S. military, including any theories promoting “radical gender ideology” or the idea that "America's founding documents are racist or sexist."

The order stated, "No individual or group within our Armed Forces should be preferred or disadvantaged on the basis of sex, race, ethnicity, color or creed."

Two days later, the new federal Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) announced the elimination of 104 DEI contracts in more than two dozen federal agencies, saving taxpayers more than $1 billion. 

This week, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported, “The University of Cincinnati is on President Donald Trump’s list of schools facing possible investigations over Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs.” And that Ohio State could be targeted, too.

But students, professors, and administrators at these fine institutions of higher education should not worry. 

I have worked closely with university and college officials behind the scenes for the last three years to make sure Senate Bill 1 will enact the kind of positive reforms needed to ensure our institutions of higher education survive and thrive for generations to come.

Eliminating the abuses of DEI and re-establishing the right to free speech on campus are just part of my comprehensive legislation. This bill will enact true education reform and make our higher education system more attractive than ever, even as enrollments drop nationally.

Senate Bill 1 also:

• Bans faculty strikes so that students will not be robbed of valuable class hours
• Requires the study of American civic institutions and history
• Prohibits universities from taking official positions on political issues
• Provides woefully needed mandatory training for university boards of trustees
• Requires public disclosure of university financial plans
• Requires syllabus transparency
• Explores innovative measures to reduce tuition costs, including three year degrees

As I wrote in On the Record last week, I have spent more than three years consulting with academic leaders and experts in drafting this bill. 

I visited numerous campuses to meet with students, faculty, administrators and trustees to talk about the need for reforms.

And, I found a strong silent majority who agree – reform is essential.

I can assure you this legislation is well received and highly anticipated behind the scenes by the majority of higher education officials in Ohio.

I believe that is why the N.A.S. concluded:

“SB 1 is good reform, it is tailored reform, it is necessary reform—and, as the experience of passing SB 117 now shows, it is practicable reform. We urge Ohio’s public and policymakers once more to support Sen. Cirino’s excellent bill. Sen. Cirino’s dedicated, thoughtful, and broadly popular work should be rewarded by passage into law.”

We have an incredibly bright future and an exciting course to chart. The wind is at our backs. And soon we will set sail into a golden age of higher education in the Buckeye State.

Jerry Cirino represents Ohio Senate District 18
He chairs the Senate Finance Committee and is Vice Chair of the Higher Education Committee