BUZZ
Penn State University’s law school wants its classrooms, admissions, and employment practices to have an overarching “antiracism” focus, according to an internal document uncovered by the Washington Free Beacon.
Penn State Dickinson Law School sent its “Strategic Plan Update” to faculty in April, the Beacon reported this week. A public institution, the law school described itself in the document as “leader in antiracism.”
The five-year plan, which goes through 2030, sets goals to “recruit, retain, teach and research according to antiracist principles” and embrace an “antiracist critical pedagogy.”
Under the section “Teaching and Learning,” the plan states that the school “leverage[s] critical pedagogy, antiracism, technology and generative AI, and the expertise of our scholars and staff professionals to” prepare students to practice law.
Another section, “Increase Access to Legal Education for All,” sets a goal to promote “a Historical and Contextual Understanding of the Power and Promise of the U.S. Constitution to Restructure Society Along the Lines of Systemic Equity, Justice, Equality, and Fairness for All.”
As part of its goal to “create a more diverse and inclusive legal profession,” the law school also wants to “[p]repare all colleagues to teach and learn about institutional antiracism.”
The employment goals listed in the plan have prompted legal concerns, according to the Beacon:
The document, a “Strategic Plan Update” covering the next five years, also pledges to expand “employment opportunities for candidates who are underrepresented in the University and at the Law School.” It does not appear anywhere on the website for the law school, whose dean, Danielle Conway, became the president of the American Association of Law Schools this year. …
Critics said the plan’s emphasis on race is likely to expose the school to legal action. “Every known definition of ‘antiracism’ explains that race will be a factor in decision making. This is illegal and should be challenged in court,” said Ed Blum, the civil rights activist and president of Students for Fair Admissions, the organization behind the litigation that brought down affirmative action in college admissions. “Moreover, the pledge to ‘expand employment opportunities for candidates who are underrepresented’ suggests race and ethnicity will be factors in hiring. This is most likely actionable in a court of law.”
The American Bar Association got rid of accreditation criteria in 2025 that had required diversity, equity and inclusion in law schools.
However, a recent Defending Education report found that dozens of law schools still require DEI coursework or programming to graduate, The College Fix reported last week.
MORE: Proposed racial quota system for law schools scrapped by American Bar Association
