Virginia Darden Confirms Suspension From The Consortium — And Forté — Amid Mounting DEI Pressure

University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business confirmed this morning (July 22) that it has suspended its partnership with The Consortium for Graduate Study in Management, the second member school to do so this summer.

Darden has also suspended its participation in the Forte Foundation, a non-profit network of businesses and business schools that works to increase women’s representation in business education and leadership roles, according to a written statement from McGregor McCance, a Darden spokesperson.

The suspensions are “part of a broader review of programs and partnerships across the University,” McCance wrote to Poets&Quants. “Darden will continue to support our students and community throughout this process. We don’t have additional information to share at this time beyond this statement.”

‘NOT A REFLECTION OF THE VALUE OR QUALITY OF OUR WORK TOGETHER’

Darden appears to have suspended its Consortium partnership on July 17, according to an email the Consortium sent to prospective applicants that was later posted on Reddit.

“This suspension is not a reflection of the value or quality of our work together. UVA Darden has made clear that this decision is purely driven by the scrutiny and evaluations of their programs, policies and practices, not by any dissatisfaction with our partnership or mission,” the email reads.

“University of Virginia Darden School of Business has been an exceptional partner since 1992, and we are grateful for the many students who have benefited from our collaboration over these many years. We respect their position and remain hopeful that we may find new ways to collaborate in the future as policies evolve.”

CONSORTIUM NOW HAS 23 MEMBER SCHOOLS

Darden is the second business school to exit the Consortium this month. University of Texas at Austin’s McCombs School of Business ended its four-decade partnership effective July 1. Both schools seem to have left amid mounting state and federal pressure regarding their DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) policies. (See: ‘If We Stay Silent, They’ll Leave Us Alone:’ Still No Comment From Texas McCombs Or Consortium On Historic Split)

That leaves 23 schools in The Consortium, a network of business schools and companies working to help Black, Hispanic, and Native American students earn elite MBA degrees and enter corporate leadership pipelines. Consortium Fellows receive full-tuition scholarships to member schools while Consortium Fellows and student members receive networking, professional development, and other resources. In 2004, the organization expanded its eligibility to include all U.S. citizens and permanent residents who demonstrate a commitment to its mission.

U.S. higher education has been under unprecedented pressure from the Trump administration since January. While both public and private institutions have been targeted, public universities are particularly vulnerable because of state-level funding and oversight.

Private universities, while shielded from state laws, rely heavily on federal research grants and financial aid. And Trump and his administration seem to be gunning for elite institutions like Harvard, Columbia, and Stanford, all of which have been named in federal investigations or lawsuits.

The table below shows the 25 Consortium member schools active at the start of this year, grouped by state. Washington University in St. Louis, Indiana University, and the University of Wisconsin were the founding member schools, joining in 1966.

University (B‑School)	Consortium Member?	Year Joined	Public/Private	State
University of California, Berkeley (Haas)	✓	1993 & 2010	Public	California
University of California, Los Angeles (Anderson)	✓	2010	Public	California
University of Southern California (Marshall)	✓	1968	Private	California
Stanford University (GSB)	✓	2022	Private	California
Yale University (SOM)	✓	2008	Private	Connecticut
Georgetown University (McDonough)	✓	2013	Private	District of Columbia
Emory University (Goizueta)	✓	2001	Private	Georgia
University of Chicago (Booth)	✓	2024	Private	Illinois
Northwestern University (Kellogg)	✓	2023	Private	Illinois
Indiana University (Kelley)	✓	1966	Public	Indiana
University of Michigan (Ross)	✓	1983	Public	Michigan
Washington University in St. Louis (Olin)	✓	1966	Private	Missouri
Dartmouth College (Tuck)	✓	1999	Private	New Hampshire
Cornell University (SC Johnson)	✓	2009	Private	New York
Columbia University (CBS)	✓	2021	Private	New York
New York University (Stern)	✓	1984	Private	New York
University of Rochester (Simon)	✓	1968	Private	New York
University of North Carolina (Kenan‑Flagler)	✓	1973	Public	North Carolina
Duke University (Fuqua)	✓	2024	Private	North Carolina
Carnegie Mellon University (Tepper)	✓	2001	Private	Pennsylvania
Rice University (Jones)	✓	2017	Private	Texas
University of Texas at Austin (McCombs)	Left July 1	1984	Public	Texas
University of Virginia (Darden)	Left July 17	1992	Public	Virginia
University of Washington (Foster)	✓	2018	Public	Washington
University of Wisconsin–Madison (Wisconsin WSB)	✓	1966	Public	Wisconsin

RED-STATE PRESSURE PLAYS

Among Consortium member schools, public universities in red states are under significant political pressure.

In Texas, Senate Bill 17 took effect in January 2024, banning public universities from maintaining DEI offices, staff, and hiring practices. UT Austin responded by closing its DEI office, canceling cultural ceremonies, and reassigning staff. This year, lawmakers passed Senate Bill 37, expanding legislative control over faculty governance and curriculum. (Rice University, as a private school, is more shielded from state laws.)

Indiana’s Republican supermajority passed a law in April banning public universities from taking actions based on race and gender. In May, Indiana University closed its Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, directing academic units “to take necessary steps to ensure compliance with state and federal policies and guidance,” according to a school release.

In North Carolina, the UNC system’s Board of Governors repealed its DEI policy in 2024 and replaced it with a policy called “Equality Within the University of North Carolina,” eliminating DEI offices and funding. The change came without legislative prompting, but the General Assembly followed suit: After Trump carried the state 51% to 47.8%, the legislature passed Senate Bill 558 to ban DEI in public universities. Gov. Josh Stein vetoed the bill on July 3, but lawmakers are expected to attempt an override on July 29.

Of course, being in a Blue (or Blueish) state won’t necessarily save DEI programs. Just ask Virginia.

UVA: A HIGH-PROFILE TARGET

Perhaps no public university has been more consequentially strong-armed by the Trump administration than University of Virginia.

Though Democratic nominee Kamala Harris won Virginia with 51.8% of the vote in 2024, and Democrats have a slight majority in both chambers, Virginia’s governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general are all Republicans.

Earlier this spring, UVA’s Board of Visitors unanimously voted to dismantle its office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and end practices deemed discriminatory on the basis of race.  It didn’t matter. The Department of Justice launched an investigation anyway, claiming that UVA merely rebranded its DEI initiatives and personnel.

The university’s current Board of Visitors, appointed by Governor Glenn Youngkin, are conservative Republicans who lean right. Individually and as a group, they lack idealogical diversity, a conservative battle cry in right wing attacks on universities. All together, the UVA board of visitors have contributed more than $4.8 million to Republican candidates and committees vs. $10,000 to Democrats  according to The Cavalier Daily, the student newspaper. 

In May, the ultra right-wing America First Legal filed a 98-page letter to DOJ, alleging that UVA President James Ryan and his leadership team hadn’t actually dismantled anything. The letter called out Darden’s partnerships with groups like The Consortium, Forte Foundation, and others that provide scholarships and support to under-represented minorities and women. America First Legal also repeatedly called for Ryan’s head.

On June 26, Ryan announced his resignation saying he did so to shield the university from escalating federal retaliation that could jeopardize research funding, student aid, jobs, and visas. He plans to remain on UVA’s faculty.

Such direct DOJ intervention is a threat to both academic freedom and institutional autonomy, critics say. It also sets a troubling precedent. It is the first time federal officials explicitly tied grant funding to the removal of a university official. (See: How The Trump Administration Is Strong Arming Higher Education).

In this climate, it’s little surprise that Darden would have to reconsider its partnerships with organizations like The Consortium and Forté.

The question is: Will other Consortium schools – or Forte schools, for that matter – be forced to make similar decisions?

DON’T MISS: ‘IF WE STAY SILENT, THEY’LL LEAVE US ALONE:’ STILL NO COMMENT FROM TEXAS MCCOMBS OR CONSORTIUM ON HISTORIC SPLIT and AMID DEI BACKLASH, UT AUSTIN’S MCCOMBS QUIETLY ENDS 40-YEAR PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CONSORTIUM 

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