The Trump administration is proposing a new rule that would strip private schools and colleges of their tax-exempt status if they provide targeted help to students based on their race, targeting diversity programs such as those directed at Black, Hispanic, and other minority students. The proposed regulation, set to take effect in 2027, aims to end policies or programs that help students due to their race, with the US Treasury Department estimating up to 18,000 institutions could be affected. The proposal is part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies, which officials claim discriminate against white and Asian American students. Higher education leaders have criticized the move as an attack on working-class Americans' access to higher education.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-04,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
The Trump administration has proposed a new rule that would strip private schools and colleges of their tax-exempt status if they provide targeted help to students based on their race. Up to 18,000 institutions could be affected, according to Treasury and IRS officials. The rule is aimed at ending any policies or programs that help students because of their race, including benefits in admissions, scholarships, and facilities. Critics have called the move "blatantly illegal" and say it will do nothing to make education fairer. The proposed regulation was submitted by the Treasury Department on Thursday, with a potential effective date of May 2027. The rule is seen as an escalation in the White House's campaign to eradicate diversity programs directed at Black, Latino, and other minority students. The move has been met with criticism from advocates who say it will harm already underrepresented groups in education.
Written for “Trump Targets Private Schools” on 2026-09-05,
grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.
The Trump administration says its proposed legislation aims to make university equal and accessible to all and end “woke” campaigns which deliberately favour certain students over others due to socioeconomic or racial backgrounds.
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which → say → backgrounds
The Trump administration is proposing a new rule that would strip private schools and colleges of their tax-exempt status if they provide targeted help to students based on their race, a significant escalation in the White House's campaign to eradicate diversity programs directed at Black, Hispanic and other minority students.
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they → propose → students
The US Treasury Department proposed the change on Thursday in a new regulation that, if made final, would kick in after May 2027 with the conclusion of the academic year.
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that → propose → year
The rule is broadly aimed at ending any policies or programmes that help students because of their race, and it specifically says such benefits in admissions, scholarships and facilities “would be incompatible” with the rule.
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benefits → aim → rule
It’s the latest attempt by the Trump administration to pressure schools and colleges to weed out diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies that had become common before President Donald Trump returned to the White House with a promise to end them.
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Trump → ’ → them
Trump officials have used Civil Rights-era laws to unwind the policies, saying they discriminate against white and Asian American students.
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they → use → students
Higher education leaders criticized the proposal.
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leaders → criticize → proposal
“The administration’s latest rules changes are its most blatant attack to keep working class Americans and people of colour from accessing higher education and a better life,” said Mike Gavin, President and CEO of the Alliance for Higher Education.
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Gavin → keep → Education
“By claiming that efforts to increase fair opportunity for all students are discriminatory, the administration is trying to gaslight the American people into believing that up is down and black is white.”
Scores of universities have shut down or rebranded their DEI offices and ended scholarships and clubs designed for minority students under pressure from the White House.
In a statement announcing the proposal, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested that even policies that are no longer under the banner of DEI could be targeted.
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that → claim → DEI
“Schools rebranding race-based preferences as equitable, inclusive, or diversity-enhancing does not change their discriminatory nature,” Bessent wrote in a post on X announcing the proposed legislation.
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Bessent → rebrande → legislation
The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) estimate that up to 18,000 private schools, colleges and other education institutions could be affected by the proposal.
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schools → estimate → proposal
US private universities have been exempt from many taxes for more than a century because they provide a public good.
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they → provide → good
The benefit saves many universities millions of dollars every year.
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benefit → save → dollars
Trump has seen the tax-exempt status as a lever to pull in his pressure campaign against colleges that he describes as hotbeds of “wokeness” and “radical left ideology”.
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he → see → wokeness
He previously threatened to cut the benefit for Harvard University last year during his battle with the nation’s oldest college.
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He → threaten → college
In a response, Harvard officials said there was no legal basis for doing so and argued it would force cuts to financial aid and crucial medical research.
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it → say → aid
It’s incredibly rare for the federal government to go after a college’s tax-exempt status, but there’s one notable precedent.
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government → ’ → status
Bob Jones University, a small Christian school in South Carolina, lost the benefit in the 1970s over a ban on interracial dating and marriage on campus.
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University → lose → campus
The Supreme Court upheld the IRS’s decision to deny the school its exemption.
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Court → uphold → exemption
The school has since ended the ban and regained tax-exempt status in 2017.
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school → end → 2017
Laws forbid the IRS from targeting individuals and organisations for ideological reasons, and federal officials are not allowed to direct IRS investigations.
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officials → forbid → investigations
To maintain nonprofit status, which allows donations to be tax-deductible, organisations must follow IRS rules on lobbying, political campaign activity and annual reporting requirements, plus other obligations.
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organisations → maintain → lobbying
The Trump administration describes the new proposal as a move toward restoring merit in the nation’s education systems.
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administration → describe → systems
The Justice Department has separately opened investigations into several medical schools that it accuses of favouring Black and Hispanic students in admissions.
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it → open → admissions
Trump officials say any such favouritism violates Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, a federal law that forbids discrimination in education and was created to fight segregation and its impact.
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that → say → segregation
