Seventh Circuit weighs whether Education Department can cut grants tied to DEI

A federal appeals court grappled with a legal battle on Thursday between an education organization and the Trump administration over the Department of Education’s decision to terminate a grant due to the group’s advancement of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, the latest courtroom fight over the administration’s bid to end DEI through government programs and grants.A three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit heard arguments between lawyers for the ACT Now Coalition, an education group which specializes in providing after-school programs for students in Illinois, and the Department of Justice over the Education Department’s December 2025 decision to terminate the group’s grants. Michael Ortega, the lawyer arguing for the ACT Now Coalition, argued stripping the funding violates the First Amendment by retaliating based on viewpoint, while emphasizing the effects of taking away the group’s funding. Recommended Stories “The department never once identified any noncompliance or performance issues, then, last December, the department abruptly discontinued funding and left thousands of Illinois children without these essential services. Executive orders mandated purges of diversity, equity, and inclusion as ‘dangerous, far-left initiatives that undermine our national unity,'” Ortega said. “On those orders, the department adopted an unprecedented policy priority: scour old applications, find entities committed to the support of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and cut their funding, regardless of what services would be lost.” Ortega was grilled by the panel on whether the group had committed to not pushing DEI, questioning Ortega’s claims that they had made that commitment and appearing generally skeptical of the group’s arguments. Lewis Yelin, the DOJ lawyer arguing on behalf of the Education Department, was grilled by the panel on why some groups were able to maintain funding, while the ACT Now Coalition was stripped of their grants.“The department determined in those other cases that there were not proposals to use the grant funds in ways that the department found concerning,” Yelin said, while urging the judges to reject the group’s First Amendment arguments.The three-judge panel on the 7th Circuit included U.S. Circuit Judges Thomas Kirsch, an appointee of President Donald Trump; John Lee, an appointee of former President Joe Biden; and Nancy Maldonado, also a Biden appointee. The panel did not indicate how or when it would rule.MARYLAND JEWISH CENTER ASKS 4TH CIRCUIT TO ALLOW MEMBERS TO CARRY GUNS TO PRAYER FOR SELF-DEFENSEThe Trump administration’s bid to end DEI in government agencies and among grant recipients has been a major legal fight in federal courtrooms since early last year. The administration has had a mixed record on the issue, seeing more success the higher up in the federal court system a case goes.One of the major wins for the administration came in April, when the 4th Circuit rejected an effort by the city of Baltimore and others to strike down executive orders broadly banning DEI programs in the federal government and among federal grants and contracts. In the ACT Now Coalition case, the federal district court tossed several of the group’s claims and denied the group’s bid for a preliminary injunction on First Amendment grounds earlier this year.