WASHINGTON — August 25, 2026 — Colleges and universities across the United States are reducing or eliminating African American and Black studies programs, departments, majors and classes, creating a growing debate over whether the changes are primarily the result of financial pressures and declining enrollment or part of a broader political shift over how race is taught in higher education.
A Washington Post review found that more than a dozen colleges have scaled back Black, African or African American studies programs since President Donald Trump signed an executive order targeting diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Universities have cited several reasons for the changes, including low enrollment, budget deficits, state laws and restrictions on courses dealing with race and ethnicity.
The cuts have raised concern among scholars who say Black studies is being weakened at precisely the moment when political battles over American history, race and higher education have intensified.
A Wave of Cuts Across Universities
The changes vary significantly from one institution to another.
Some universities have eliminated entire departments or merged them with other academic units. Others have stopped admitting students to particular majors, phased out degrees or reduced the number of classes offered.
Universities that have closed or merged African American studies units during the past two years include the University of Iowa, University of Texas at Austin and University of Kansas.
Other institutions, including Kennesaw State University, University of Toledo and Indiana University at Bloomington, have eliminated or begun phasing out certain majors or degrees.
Several colleges have also reduced staffing or removed Black studies courses from general education requirements.
The result is not a single nationwide policy but a collection of decisions being made by universities under different financial and political circumstances.
Low Enrollment Is a Major Factor
One of the strongest arguments from university administrators is economic.
Enrollment in African American studies programs has fallen in recent years. Federal data analyzed by a researcher at the American Academy of Arts & Sciences shows that students earned fewer than 700 degrees nationally in African American studies for three consecutive years, the lowest level in roughly two decades.
That decline is notable because the number of institutions offering such programs has gradually increased over the same period.
For universities facing budget problems, programs producing relatively few graduates can become vulnerable.
Administrators often have to decide which academic programs should receive faculty positions, classrooms and other resources. When universities are required to reduce spending, departments with small numbers of majors can face disproportionate pressure.
Supporters of those decisions argue that universities must concentrate limited resources on programs that attract enough students to remain financially sustainable.
Budget Problems Are Making the Cuts Worse
Financial pressure is particularly severe at some public universities.
The University of North Texas, for example, projected a $45 million budget shortfall for the fiscal year ending this month. The university attributed its financial difficulties partly to declining enrollment, including fewer international graduate students, as well as reductions in state funding for instruction and operations.
As part of its response, the university announced plans to close or consolidate a number of programs, including undergraduate minors in Africana studies and several other ethnic, gender and cultural studies fields.
Such decisions illustrate why it can be difficult to separate the political debate from the financial one.
A university can legitimately argue that a program is being consolidated because of low enrollment while critics can simultaneously point to a political environment that makes race-related academic programs particularly vulnerable.
Both forces can operate at the same time.
State Laws Are Changing What Universities Can Teach
Another important factor is the growing number of state laws regulating instruction involving race, ethnicity, gender and so-called divisive concepts.
Florida, for example, enacted a law in 2023 restricting certain subjects in core general education courses and prohibiting instruction involving what the law describes as “identity politics.”
North Carolina passed legislation this year generally prohibiting public universities from requiring courses involving certain “divisive concepts” concerning race or gender.
Texas A&M also canceled eight courses under new policies governing race and gender instruction. Among the courses removed were “Introduction to Race and Ethnicity” and other classes focused on diversity.
These policies can influence universities even when they do not specifically order a Black studies department to close.
If colleges believe certain courses could create legal or political complications, administrators may decide to remove, redesign or relocate them.
The Trump Administration's Anti-DEI Campaign
The changes are also occurring during a major national campaign against diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
The Trump administration has argued that some DEI initiatives amount to racial discrimination and has taken steps to dismantle or restrict them across the federal government.
The administration has also blocked or scrutinized research funding related to race, adding another layer of uncertainty for scholars whose work depends on federal grants.
Critics of the university cuts argue that this broader political environment cannot be ignored.
Jafari Sinclaire Allen, director of the Institute for Research in African American Studies at Columbia University, told The Washington Post that politics is the central force behind the changes rather than merely one factor.
Allen and other scholars warn that cutting programs could damage the academic pipeline by reducing opportunities for students and weakening the training environment for future researchers.
Scholars Fear a Long-Term Impact
Black studies programs have played an important role in studying slavery, segregation, the civil rights movement, Black political movements, culture, literature and contemporary racial issues.
Supporters argue that the field is not simply about teaching Black history. It also contributes to broader research in American history, politics, sociology, literature, anthropology and other disciplines.
Erica R. Edwards, chair of Black studies at Yale University, said the field has become a target because of its willingness to examine issues including racism, sexism and immigration.
She argued that current political efforts to restrict the teaching of race and history are contributing to pressure on Black studies programs.
Some scholars worry that the damage could extend beyond current students.
If departments disappear, fewer graduate students may be trained in the field. That can reduce the number of future professors and researchers, potentially creating a cycle in which universities have fewer scholars available to teach Black studies.
Conservatives Dispute the Political Explanation
Not everyone agrees that politics is the primary cause.
Neetu Arnold, a policy analyst at the conservative Manhattan Institute, said the cuts are likely being driven largely by low enrollment and financial considerations.
Arnold has also argued that some Black and African American studies departments have moved too far toward political advocacy and away from academic scholarship.
That perspective reflects a larger conservative criticism of humanities programs: universities, opponents argue, should not maintain programs that attract relatively few students while requiring significant resources.
The debate therefore involves two competing interpretations.
One sees the cuts as part of a coordinated political effort to suppress scholarship about race. The other sees them primarily as a necessary response to changing student demand, financial constraints and concerns about ideological balance.
The Decline in Degrees Is Complicated
The enrollment numbers provide evidence for administrators who argue that the field is struggling to attract students.
But the numbers also raise questions.
If the number of universities offering African American studies programs has increased while the number of students earning degrees has fallen, universities may have created more programs than the market for those degrees can sustain.
That could make smaller programs especially vulnerable during periods of budget cuts.
At the same time, low enrollment does not necessarily mean that the academic field lacks value.
Universities routinely maintain programs with small enrollments because they contribute to research, general education and the intellectual mission of the institution.
The difficult question is how universities determine which small programs deserve continued investment.
Some Universities Are Choosing Consolidation Instead
Not every institution is eliminating Black studies entirely.
Northwestern University recently moved its African studies program from its research office to the provost's office and eliminated two positions supporting the program.
Despite those changes, the university says the program will continue conducting research and offering a graduate certificate, as well as undergraduate majors and minors.
A university spokesman emphasized that the program is not being downgraded.
That distinction is important because administrative restructuring does not necessarily mean that academic instruction disappears.
In some cases, universities may be trying to preserve the subject while reducing administrative costs.
More Cuts Could Follow
The current wave of changes may not be finished.
The University of Georgia, for example, is evaluating whether to eliminate programs with low enrollment as part of a broader academic review. Its African American studies major is among the programs being evaluated.
Other universities facing financial pressure may conduct similar reviews.
If enrollment remains low and state funding declines, administrators could conclude that additional programs need to be merged or eliminated.
That could make the next several academic years especially important for Black studies departments around the country.
A Larger Battle Over Higher Education
The dispute over Black studies is part of a much broader confrontation over the future of American higher education.
Conservatives have increasingly challenged programs and policies associated with DEI, while many faculty members and civil rights advocates argue that those efforts threaten academic freedom and the teaching of American history.
The American Studies Association has described the current attacks on humanities programs as unusually broad and coordinated compared with earlier political controversies.
The disagreement is therefore not simply about the survival of individual departments.
It raises fundamental questions about what universities should teach, how much political influence governments should have over academic programs and how institutions should balance intellectual diversity with financial realities.
The Future of Black Studies Remains Uncertain
For now, the national picture is mixed.
Some universities are eliminating departments, majors or classes. Others are consolidating programs while maintaining degrees and research. Still others continue to invest in the field.
The common thread is that Black studies is operating under pressure from three powerful forces: declining enrollment, financial constraints and political scrutiny.
Determining which factor matters most will remain a contentious question.
What is clear is that the cuts could have consequences beyond today's university budgets. If departments disappear, the country could lose academic infrastructure devoted to researching and teaching major parts of American history and culture.
For supporters, the current moment represents a threat to the survival of an academic field built over decades. For critics, it is an overdue reconsideration of programs that have struggled to attract students and have, in their view, become too closely associated with political activism.
As more universities review their academic offerings, the debate over Black studies is likely to continue — not only as a question of university finances, but as a larger argument over history, race, academic freedom and the role of higher education in American society.
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