Dear Gov. DeWine, Senate Bill 1 betrays your alma mater

Ohio Senate Bill 1 (S.B. 1) was signed into law on March 28 by Gov. Mike DeWine, alumnus of Miami University.

S.B.1 is just one of many bills across the country trying to gut diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in higher education.

The bill took over two years to pass through the legislature in order to “ensure an environment for intellectual diversity,” according to the Ohio Senate’s website.

The webpage notably includes a photo of Rep. Josh Williams, Sen. Jerry Cirino, DeWine, Rep. Tom Young, Speaker Matt Huffman, Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel and a photo of DeWine with the Cirino family.

The cover photo includes all white men over 70 who have minimal experience in higher education, aside from Williams for the 44th house district and Tressel, whose Ohio State University football career came to a controversial end after failing to disclose improper benefits recieved by his players , violating NCAA rules at the time.

Interestingly enough, Williams received DEI scholarships and claims to have added amendments to save those types of scholarships, but they failed due to “Supreme Court decisions.”

Aside from “intellectual diversity,” the official senate website claims the bill “ends discriminatory DEI litmus testing for faculty hiring, and it puts students and their hard earned tuition first by protecting them from the risk of a strike by the faculty.”

Additionally, the bill requires posting syllabi online, which were previously only accessible to class takers and students, prohibits donations from China, enforces an American civics class starting in 2030 and forces a faculty questionnaire question with the verbiage, “Does the faculty member create a classroom atmosphere free of political racial, gender, and religious bias?”

So, where did this come from that universities are transactional and uncontroversial? Passing a class shouldn’t be expected or make you comfortable; it should be earned through hard work and force you to question your understanding, and this dangerous rhetoric will fail Ohio students.

This issue hits Miami’s campus directly.

Faculty Alliance of Miami (FAM) has been negotiating contracts with the university for over two years. FAM and Miami recently came to contract negotiation agreements on Feb. 24.

FAM’s FAQ section explains why they organized.

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“Individually, Visiting Faculty (Visiting Assistant Professors and Instructors) have little control over our working lives, but together, we have the power to create a better Miami,” the website reads.

Lack of government guardrails for workers isn't anything new; it is why unions were created in the first place. The powerful will always want to make more money at the expense of the weak, even if that means controlling higher education in this case.

Punishing educators for speaking up against workplace mistreatment under the guise of helping students is a gross mischaracterization and vilification of higher education employees across the state of Ohio.

Additionally, the bill claims to declare that state universities will not “endorse or oppose any controversial belief or policy” unless of course it impacts funding, according to the Ohio Capital Journal.

But don’t fret, there is still hope.

This bill is a blatant attack on the First Amendment rights of Ohio students and faculty alike.

On Feb. 21, a district judge in Baltimore, Maryland, ruled that President Donald Trump's efforts to ban DEI likely infringe on the First Amendment and temporarily blocked those executive orders.

Additionally, the National Labor Relations Board states on its website, “Employees shall have the right … to engage in other concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection.”

Strikes are included among the concerted activities protected for employees by this section under the National Labor Relations Act.

While I am not a legal scholar, I have faith that the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education will step in to fight this bill as they did against Trump’s efforts that resulted in the temporary block in February.

The Ohio Capital Journal said it expects litigation as well, from various groups that testified against the bill. This includes the Ohio Counseling Association, Ohio Federation of Teachers, National Association of Social Workers, Ohio Student Association, Ohio Faculty Council, CAIR, Undergraduate Student Governments of Ohio, the Ohio Education Association, the AFL-CIO and others.

To Mike DeWine, you have betrayed the community that built you.

I am shocked that a Miamian would directly attempt to turn away a diversified group of people, ideas and experiences.

I am disappointed you do not embrace the spirit, academic rigor, opportunities and challenges of a Miami experience, preparing students to make the world a better place.

I am angry you did not defend the freedom of inquiry that is the heart of learning.

You do not demonstrate Love and Honor by failing to support and care for your fellow Miamians.

You are not Miami.

morri390@miamioh.edu

Landon Morrison is a writer and designer passionate about storytelling at the intersection of culture, policy, and public impact. He is currently pursuing a Master’s in Entrepreneurship at Miami University, where he earned his degree in Emerging Technology in Business and Design in December 2024. Landon has aspirations to work in journalism or communications in the non-profit sector.