Judge Steps Down From Teachers’ Union Lawsuit Challenging DEI Ban

The U.S. Education Department had required institutions to comply by the end of last month or risk losing federal funding.

People walk in front of the Department of Education building in Washington on Feb. 4, 2025. Kevin Lamarque/Reuters/File Photo

A federal judge has recused himself from a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s recent guidance demanding that schools and colleges end their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs.

In an order issued Monday, Judge Joseph Laplante of the District of New Hampshire stated that his role as a part-time faculty member at several American law schools could create a conflict of interest.

Among the institutions where Laplante teaches is the University of New Hampshire School of Law, which is affiliated with the National Education Association (NEA), the country’s biggest teacher’s union and a lead plaintiff in the case.

“Because the judge’s performance as a graduate level instructor could implicate, or be implicated by, the subject matter of this case, reasonable participants and other individuals might reasonably question the judge’s impartiality,” he wrote.

The lawsuit was filed on March 5 by NEA’s New Hampshire and national chapters and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). The groups argue that the U.S. Department of Education’s new guidance on DEI programs is “unconstitutionally vague.”

The department’s stances are outlined in a Feb. 14 “Dear Colleague” letter from its Office for Civil Rights, which reaffirmed its commitment to enforcing federal anti-discrimination laws.

The letter warns education institutions that all “covert racial discrimination” and “race-based decision-making” under the DEI banner is illegal, and that they must not try to use third-party contractors to circumvent these prohibitions. Schools were given until Feb. 28 to comply or risk losing federal funding.

The enforcement effort is based in part on the department’s interpretation of the U.S. Supreme Court 2023 decision that found the so-called “race-conscious” college admissions unconstitutional. The department said the ruling should apply more broadly to prohibit schools and colleges from treating students differently based on race in pursuit of DEI goals.

“The law is clear: treating students differently on the basis of race to achieve nebulous goals such as diversity, racial balancing, social justice, or equity is illegal under controlling Supreme Court precedent,” the letter states.

The NEA and ACLU have asked the court to block the directive, which they said could stifle free speech in schools.

The lawsuit cites three anonymous New Hampshire educators—a high school English teacher, an eighth-grade social studies teacher, and a middle school counselor—all of whom are union members and allege they are affected by the new anti-DEI policy.

The English teacher, according to the complaint, fears disciplinary actions based on the language of the guidance “because of the ways issues related to diversity, systemic racism, and moral burdens come up in his classroom.”

Similarly, the social studies teacher worries that lessons on U.S. history could violate the guidance’s restrictions on discussing “systemic and structural racism” or “discriminatory policies and practices.”

The lawsuit echoes a previous legal challenge from the NEA and ACLU against a New Hampshire law restricting classroom discussions on “divisive concepts,” such as the idea that individuals are inherently racist, sexist, or oppressive by virtue of their race or gender. A different federal judge struck down that law last May, ruling that it failed to provide teachers with “much-needed clarity” on its application.

The state has appealed that ruling.

The Epoch Times has reached out to the Education Department for comment.