MIT drops DEI statement requirement in faculty hiring

On Sunday, it was revealed that the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has dumped diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) statements from its faculty hiring process.  

According to UnHerd, the elite university removed a requirement mandating that individuals applying to be faculty submit a diversity, equity and inclusion statement as part of the hiring process. 

According to MIT’s Communication Lab, MIT previously required candidates applying to teach at the prestigious college to submit a statement that "demonstrates knowledge of challenges related to diversity, equity, and inclusion" and outline their "track record of working with diverse groups of people." 

Applicants were also required to describe how they would advance DEI in their role at the university. 

The decision was reportedly made by MIT President Sally Kornbluth along with the school’s Provost, Chancellor, and all academic deans. 

Kornbluth said in a statement, "My goals are to tap into the full scope of human talent, to bring the very best to MIT, and to make sure they thrive once here. We can build an inclusive environment in many ways, but compelled statements impinge on freedom of expression, and they don’t work." 

A university spokesperson confirmed the decision in a statement to Fox News adding, "Requests for a statement on diversity will no longer be part of applications for any faculty positions at MIT." 

Following Kornbluth’s December testimony before Congress for not adequately addressing antisemitism on campus, attorney Alan Dershowitz penned a scathing rebuke of Kornbluth along with the presidents of the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard, writing that the trio had "articulated and enforced a double standard of free speech to the detriment of Jewish students." 

Dershowitz predicted that following the resignations of Claudine Gay from Harvard and Liz Magill from UPenn, Kornbluth would be next.