A panel of state Senators has voted to defund the University of Tennessee's Office of Diversity:
Sen. Todd Gardenhire's bill would divert all state funds from the Knoxville office's budget to minority scholarships for engineering students. It would also bar the university from using state funds to support the annual Sex Week programming or gender-neutral pronouns.
The bill passed by a wide margin, 9-2, in the Senate Finance, Ways and Means Committee and is headed to the Senate floor. There was some disagreement over the way the bill was amended in the House before it was sent over to the senate. "The House bill was amended to send about $100,000 of the Knoxville diversity office’s funding to a program that would print “In God We Trust” decals for law enforcement vehicles while sending about $336,000 to minority scholarships." Both chambers will have to agree on the language before it can become a law.
Republican lawmakers have threatened to defund the diversity office for months after two controversial posts on the office website that promoted the use of gender-neutral pronouns and "inclusive holiday celebrations." University officials eventually removed both posts, but lawmakers have continued to question UT's diversity funding throughout the legislative session.
The University of Tennessee has not commented about how the defunding would affect the school. In a statement Tuesday, university spokeswoman Karen Simsen said “It is speculative for the university to comment about pending legislation.”
Students have spoken out about the potential funding cut. As the senate panel was voting, students walked out of class to protest the defunding attempt.
