A high-stakes campaign to challenge Ohio’s sweeping new law restricting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, and banning faculty strikes at public colleges, has come up short. Organizers announced Thursday that their petition drive fell below the threshold needed to trigger a statewide referendum.
Flanked by towering boxes of petition forms, campaign leaders admitted they were unable to gather the necessary 250,000 signatures before the deadline. Without those signatures, Senate Bill 1 is set to take effect Friday.
The law, which overhauls higher education policy in the state, was passed by the Republican-dominated legislature and signed by Governor Mike DeWine in March. Supporters argue it will safeguard “intellectual diversity” by encouraging a broader spectrum of views on college campuses, particularly conservative perspectives.
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But the legislation sparked a wave of backlash. Thousands of educators and students voiced opposition during public hearings and demonstrations at the Statehouse, calling it a direct threat to academic freedom and labor rights.
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Apart from banning DEI initiatives, Senate Bill 1 bars institutions from taking stances on what it deems “controversial beliefs or topics,” a broad category that includes climate change, foreign policy, immigration, electoral politics, abortion, marriage, and more.
It also prohibits faculty strikes, strips voting rights from student trustees at The Ohio State University, and mandates that every college student complete a three-hour civics course. The law imposes dozens of additional academic and administrative changes on Ohio’s 14 public universities and 23 community colleges.
According to an AP report, schools that fail to comply with the law could face serious financial consequences, including the loss of state funding.
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