by A group of conservative University of Virginia alums known as the Jefferson Council were frustrated and impatient.
The group has been ranting about James E. Ryan, the president of the university, for years for his vigorous support of campus diversity initiatives.
They had relied on Glenn Youngkin, the Republican governor of the state who fiercely opposed D.E.I., to impose a new course at one of the most prominent public colleges in the nation. However, when 2025, the last year of Mr. Youngkin’s tenure, started, the university’s system for diversity, equity, and inclusion remained intact. And there was not much time left, as polls indicated that a Republican candidate would have a difficult time winning the governorship.
However, President Trump became a new ally of the Jefferson Council during its campaign.
Executive orders prohibiting government diversity, equity, and inclusion programs were signed by Mr. Trump within his first week in office, endangering all public and private universities that received federal funding.
The Justice Department then engaged Gregory W. Brown, a contributor and University of Virginia graduate, as an attorney to assist in enforcing those orders at the Office of Civil Rights.
Mr. Brown was well known to the Jefferson Council. He had sued his alma mater as a private practice lawyer on behalf of students who had been recommended to him by the council for situations involving antisemitic harassment or claims of free expression infringement.
The content of the article is not being retrieved.
Please make sure that JavaScript is enabled in your browser.
We appreciate your patience as we check access. Please log out of Reader mode and sign in to your Times account, or subscribe to The Times in its entirety.
We appreciate your patience as we check access.
Are you a subscriber already?Sign in.
Do you want to read every Times article?Sign up.
