Ensuring Compliance with HB 2105

Introduction

KU is committed to equal opportunity, access, freedom of expression and the success of each member of the KU community. In an effort to ensure compliance with Kansas HB 2105, each staff and faculty member should take some time to be certain unit-level practices and activities align with law.

Please review each section below for pertinent information. If there is information you think should added to this page, please utilize our online suggestion form.

Page last updated: November 25, 2024

Committees

As of August 16, 2024 DEI Committees can resume their activities. However, there are a few important caveats to keep in mind as activities resume:

  • Committee members are not to engage in search/hiring practices or sit on search/hiring committees in their DEI committee capacity.
  • Any and all trainings related to DEI content (specific topic list from our Publication Requirement policy: “matters of non-discrimination, diversity, equity, inclusion, race, ethnicity, sex or bias”) must be reviewed by the Office of Audit, Risk, and Compliance and when necessary, posted online, per HB2105 policy requirements. 
  • Participation on the DEI committee must always be voluntary. No one can be mandated to serve on these committees or be mandated to participate in activities organized/offered by these committees.

DEI Committees are welcome to explore renaming their committee. New committee names may be more specific to the work the committee does, and/or may align with language shifts currently happening across the institution using words like access, belonging, respect, success, and/or impact. Additional guidance regarding HB 2105’s impact on this was provided in the provost’s message on 8/16/24.

Communication Guidance

Past News Articles and Archived Messages

  • Many online uses of the words “diversity,” “equity,” “inclusion,” “belonging,” “DEIB” or “DEI” appear in archived news releases and messaging. There is no need to update historical references to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, the DEIB office or employee job titles, that viewers find in a news release or archived office memo, e.g., a news or feature story that highlights the work of a student, faculty member or student organization.

Forward-looking Content about Culture and Community

Printed materials and website DEIB-content about ongoing efforts of building or improving KU culture and community should be evaluated and revised to focus on Access, Belonging, Respect and Success. 

Please work with committees and unit leaders to determine whether activities can be more accurately described through the lens of Access, Belonging, Respect and Success – and whether those activities may be considered discriminatory. For example: 

  • Will the program or activity be open to all, without regard to protected identity?
  • Will it help each person belong?
  • Does the activity foster respect for others, regardless of beliefs or backgrounds?
  • Does the committee’s work help further the success of each individual it impacts?

Much of the work under the former DEIB umbrella that can be reframed and presented as supporting access, belonging, respect and success should continue. Please ensure content language reflects this approach.

Online content should be updated at the earliest opportunity. Printed materials should be updated during the next publication cycle. Depending on the use and quantity of the printed materials, the unit may opt to accelerate the publication cycle – particularly if the current materials suggest discriminatory programming.

Existing Laws on Non-Discrimination

While HB 2105 focuses on specific areas – hiring, promotion, training and admissions – other areas of higher education activities and practices are already subject to federal and state nondiscrimination laws, such as Title VI and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and the Equal Employment Opportunity Act, as well as the Kansas Act Against Discrimination.

Accordingly, the university prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, ancestry, disability, status as a veteran, sexual orientation, marital status, parental status, gender identity, gender expression, and genetic information in the University’s programs and activities. Aside from certain legal preferences related to veterans and disabled people, such factors should never be the basis of hiring or admissions decisions.

Hiring

The Excellence in Diversity Faculty Hiring Handbook has been retired. Members of search committees and campus leaders should utilize HR’s “Best Practices in Conducting a Staff Search” (sign up via MyTalent) training to gain education and preparedness for hiring processes. Hiring committees should follow revised guidelines for staff and faculty, student positions, Graduate Research Assistants, Graduate Assistants, and Graduate Teaching Assistants.

General Guidance

  • Departments and units should discontinue use of the Excellence in Diversity in Faculty Hiring Handbook and remove any reference to it on websites or shared documents. 
  • All departments should discontinue requests for a “diversity statement” in application materials or interviews. Refer to HR’s Interview Question Generator for examples of interview questions and to create an interview question guides.
  • Departments should consult with their unit leadership and Human Resources to ensure all new searches align with the law. 
  • Review all hiring and evaluation rubrics for DEI-related evaluation criteria. Remove or revise to ensure compliance with the law.
  • It is important to note that the law does not prohibit the University from considering, in good faith, a faculty member's scholarship, teaching, or subject-matter expertise in a faculty member's academic field.

Organizational & Procedural Considerations

Organizational Consideration

  • All departments or units with DEI-related accreditation and/or membership requirements are advised to consult with General Counsel to determine the feasibility of compliance moving forward.

Procedure & Communications Review

  • Departments and units should review student, staff, or faculty services procedures to ensure they reflect the new law. Modify if needed.
  • KU Information Technology is in the process of reviewing all campus websites to ensure language represents equal opportunity for all in support of HB 2105. University leadership (Provost Office, General Council, and/or Office of Audit, Risk, and Compliance) will contact units with websites that may benefit from revision. Website language should focus on equal access for all and cultivating a culture of belonging for all Jayhawks.  
  • Departments and units are welcome to update their websites and other communication channels to reflect their compliance with HB 2105, as relevant.

There will be an FAQ website for HB 2105 and a form for suggested website content revisions. 

Policy

University-Wide Policy Review

  • The Office of Audit, Risk, and Compliance continues to review university-wide policies and works with appropriate units should updates be needed. 
  • The Office of Faculty Affairs has begun policy review regarding promotion and tenure guidelines for academic units.

Unit-Level Policy Review

  • Each unit is responsible for reviewing its policies to ensure compliance with the law. Policy owners should ensure any language that conflicts with the new state law – particularly that which relates to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) for hiring, promotion, training and admissions – is revised.
  • Units are encouraged to work on these as expeditiously as possible during the summer and fall 2024 semesters.

New Policies

  • Units should continue to work with the Office of Policy Administration when developing new policies, and they will assist in policies’ compliance with House Bill 2105.

Research & Scholarship

HB 2105 protects academic freedom of faculty and specifically exempts scholarly activity related to diversity, equity and inclusion, or other topics from the law’s restrictions. The law does not prevent faculty members from teaching, researching or writing publications about diversity, equity, inclusion or other topics, and it does not prohibit the University from considering a faculty member's scholarship, teaching or subject-matter expertise in such faculty member's academic field.  Online or print references to a faculty member’s scholarly work in these areas do not need to be revised. 

HB 2105 does not prohibit faculty, staff and students from complying with federal and state laws, including antidiscrimination laws, and compliance is our goal and our legal obligation. KU participates in several federal and foundation grant programs that include diversity-related criteria. KU will continue to comply with lawful grant criteria. But federal agencies and outside funding agencies may not lawfully require us to violate the Constitution and Title VI, and their requirements will not shield us from complaints of unlawful discrimination. 

Accordingly, any program requiring diversity-related criteria should be reviewed to ensure that neither its criteria nor our plan to achieve its objectives is unlawfully discriminatory. If you have questions about such a program, please contact General Counsel.

Please refer to this campus memo, or the HB2105 FAQ page for additional context.

Student Admissions, Scholarships, Awards

Units should ensure that student admission and scholarship applications do not request or require diversity statements or statements regarding any political ideology. Such statements should not be considered in evaluating an applicant’s materials.

Enrollment Management has ensured all student enrollment, admissions, and financial services comply with HB 2105.

Training

The Office of Audit, Risk, and Compliance collaborated with relevant campus units in summer 2024 to ensure public posting of training materials that were delivered after July 1, 2024 and included content related nondiscrimination, diversity, equity, inclusion, race, ethnicity, sex, or bias.

Frequently Asked Questions

Visit the HB 2105 FAQ page to learn more.