University of Nebraska regents approve changes to equal‑opportunity language amid public protest

The University of Nebraska Board of Regents voted April 11 to amend board bylaws and system policies governing equal opportunity and related language, a change the board’s supporters said was required to align policy with recent federal guidance and executive orders and that critics said undercuts campus diversity, equity and inclusion practices.

The vote came after a public‑comment period in which students, faculty and staff urged the board not to remove references to race, ethnicity and gender identity from bylaws and policies. Speakers told the regents they had collected hundreds of postcards and written statements opposing the change and argued that decades of higher‑education research show removing explicit protections and commitments reduces retention and graduation rates for minoritized…