U-M was not the only university working to address diversity, Schlissel said. What was different from other universities is that U-M generated a campuswide strategic plan focused on the DEI goal that was put into action within Michigan’s legal constraints.
After five years elapsed, an evaluation of the initiative showed some success but the percentage of underrepresented students increased for some but not as much for Black students, Schlissel said.
“It was a mixed bag, but the idea was it would be a project that evolved,” Schlissel said.
Schlissel emphasized that he is no longer part of high-level university discussions. But his observation is that many reasons led to the national backlash against the DEI effort, including political divides, heightened identity politics, the tenor from Washington, universities not always openly debating challenging issues and a lack of a definition of what DEI really means.