STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
We report this morning on a plan by the Internal Revenue Service. The Trump administration wants to revoke the tax-exempt status of certain private schools and universities. They would lose that status if they persist in diversity initiatives. Wesleyan University is one institution that says it values diversity, and we hear from its president after this.
MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
NPR's Adrian Florido covers race, and he's covering this story. Good morning.
ADRIAN FLORIDO, BYLINE: Good morning, Michel.
MARTIN: What kinds of schools would be affected by this?
FLORIDO: Well, any private school, elementary, high schools, universities, trade schools with any kind of program designed to benefit students on the basis of their race. A lot of schools have programs to support Black or Latino students, for example, who may be the first in their families to go to college. Some schools have scholarships or other initiatives that are aimed at promoting a more diverse student body, and the IRS is saying it's going to penalize schools for these types of programs by revoking their tax-exempt status starting next spring.
MARTIN: And why is the administration saying it wants to do this?
FLORIDO: Well, the administration is arguing that these sorts of programs are racially discriminatory. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who oversees the IRS, said in a statement that, quote, "racial discrimination has no place in American education."
This is a huge shift, Michel. Historically, the IRS has not penalized tax-exempt institutions for race-based programs or considered them discriminatory as long as these programs are trying to advance racial equity or address the effects of societal discrimination. But now the government is saying that programs that consider race even for that purpose are themselves discriminating.
MARTIN: And what kind of impact would this have?
FLORIDO: Well, it would be a huge impact on schools. The administration is trying to pressure them to end these programs by squeezing them financially. Having nonprofit tax-exempt status frees these schools from paying federal income taxes, but it's also a very important fundraising tool because people who donate to schools, like alumni, get a tax deduction.
I should say, Michel, it's not clear exactly how the IRS will identify schools that have race-based programs it does not like, but the agency says that up to 18,000 private schools could be affected by this rule change.
MARTIN: Can they really do this, though?
FLORIDO: Well, they're no doubt going to face legal challenges. I spoke with Todd Wolfson, president of the American Association of University Professors - the AAUP - which has been fighting a lot of President Trump's recent attacks on higher education.
TODD WOLFSON: AAUP is not going to stand by and watch President Trump once again attempt to destroy the greatest system of higher education in the world that gives opportunity to a diverse set of students for a diverse country. So yes - emphatically, yes, we are going to fight this.
FLORIDO: There's legal gray area here, Michel, as to whether the IRS can do this - unilaterally redefine racial discrimination and revoke tax-exempt status because of that. The fight over this, experts think, could delay this change from taking effect next May as the administration wants or possibly ever.
MARTIN: So, Adrian, before we let you go, what does the administration think should be done about patterns of racial discrimination which have historically benefited white people, which have been intended to benefit white people at the expense of other groups?
FLORIDO: Well, the administration does not believe that the government or private institutions should play any role in addressing the effects of historic discrimination. It said so, in fact, in the guidelines it published on this rule change yesterday. The administration is trying through policy changes like this at many agencies to enshrine what it says is a colorblind approach to government, something that conservatives have said for a long time that they want to see.
MARTIN: That is NPR's Adrian Florido. Adrian, thank you.
FLORIDO: Thank you, Michel. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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