Overview

• The decision responded to a summary judgment motion by the American Federation of Teachers and the American Sociological Association, which challenged the Education Department’s process and authority.
• Two memoranda had directed K-12 districts and universities to certify the absence of DEI programs or face cuts to Title I and Title VI federal funding.
• Earlier this week, Judge Dabney Friedrich found that the administration improperly withheld tens of millions of dollars in approved funding from the National Endowment for Democracy.
• A separate administration lawsuit naming all 15 Maryland federal judges in a migrant deportation dispute drew skepticism from an unnamed judge.
• That case has been reassigned to Judge Thomas Cullen of the Western District of Virginia, and related appeals of DEI guidance decisions remain pending.