Allegations of racially discriminatory hiring practices have surfaced against the University of Colorado Boulder, based on recently disclosed university documents. These records, publicized by Manhattan Institute senior fellow John Sailer, suggest that various departments within the university prioritized race in their hiring decisions.

One document explicitly stated an "aim…specifically to hire a Black, Indigenous, or Latinx faculty member." This revelation follows recent scrutiny of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, with some state attorneys general warning retailers like Costco about potentially discriminatory DEI practices.

The image above shows the University of Colorado Boulder campus. (Chet Strange/Bloomberg)

A Wall Street Journal op-ed co-authored by Sailer and Louis Galarowicz, a research fellow at the National Association of Scholars, delved into how DEI practices became embedded within the university. The authors focused on the university's "Faculty Diversity Action Plan" (FDAP), a program initiated in 2020 and restructured in 2023, which allocated special funding for diversity-focused faculty hiring. They cited a 2022 faculty meeting where the dean of the College of Arts and Sciences estimated that approximately 90% of faculty hires were either directly through the FDAP or spousal hires related to the program.

In response, a university spokesperson clarified to Fox News Digital that the FDAP specifically targeted tenured and tenure-track faculty positions. They stated that 30 out of the 143 faculty hires during the program's existence were attributed to FDAP, representing 21%, not 90%, of tenured and tenure-track hires during that period.

Further documents revealed a commitment from the Department of Journalism to hire from the BIPOC community, while the Department of Ethnic Studies expressed an "urgent and qualified need for BIPOC femme/women of color faculty" for a "thematic cluster hire" focused on racism and racial inequality. Cluster hiring involves recruiting multiple scholars across departments based on shared interdisciplinary research interests.

The University of Colorado Boulder outlines five goals on its website, established in February 2022, aimed at advancing DEI on campus. These goals encompass employee skills development, student achievement, community building, recruitment outcomes, and preparing students for a diverse society.

In a statement to Fox News Digital, the university affirmed its commitment to serving diverse communities and upholding its mission of providing quality education and supporting faculty research. They emphasized their adherence to university, state, and federal laws.

The university further clarified that the documents Sailer referenced were proposals. Approved proposals by the Faculty Diversity Action Advisory Committee would then require review and adherence to established hiring processes through Human Resources.

Another view of the University of Colorado Boulder campus. (Fox News Digital/Lisa Bennatan)

This controversy arises amidst a broader national debate surrounding DEI programs. Recently, former President Donald Trump issued an executive order aimed at ending what he termed discriminatory DEI practices within the federal workforce and federal contracting.

The University of Colorado Boulder also mentioned to Fox News Digital that under new leadership, and in anticipation of further administrative transitions, the university is currently reviewing numerous campus programs.