Boise State halted diversity class, then hired law firm. What university is doing now
A slate of Boise State diversity classes that drew controversy — before and after being abruptly suspended — will resume immediately.
Boise State University announced Wednesday that more than 50 sections of the required UF 200: Foundations of Ethics and Diversity course would resume immediately — but all online, without any live class discussions.
“Students will engage with faculty, receive and submit assignments, complete the course, and achieve their learning outcomes online — a mode of instruction with which students and faculty have become increasingly familiar over the last year,” the university said in a statement.
The university suddenly suspended the course last week after a possibly recorded incident of at least one student being “degraded” for the student’s beliefs in one of the courses. Communication among about 35 faculty members and roughly 1,300 students was shut down immediately. Some of the classes were already online, while others were in-person.
University officials don’t know which of the 52 diversity classes prompted the complaint. They hired Boise law firm Hawley Troxell to investigate — and the investigation is still ongoing. Officials have not commented on the nature of the allegation, but since-deleted tweets from a Boise State professor alleged that it involved a student uncomfortable with a discussion of white privilege.
“This decision enables students to continue their education while the investigation into serious allegations continues,” said interim provost Tony Roark. “The goal of suspending these courses was to enable the investigation to begin and ensure that this course lives up to our standard of mutual respect for faculty and students.”
The Idaho Legislature has leveled intense focus on Boise State programs dealing with diversity and inclusion in the last two years, taking issue with classes and initiatives that lawmakers say promote a so-called social justice agenda at the university. Republican-led efforts to defund some of those initiatives have intensified during the 2021 session.
Earlier this month, the Legislature moved more than $400,000 from Boise State’s budget linked to those diversity programs.
The decision to resume the classes was made in consultation with Hawley Troxell, according to the university’s statement.
This story was originally published March 24, 2021 at 2:12 PM.
