The DEI landscape has changed once again. In the past two weeks, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction temporarily halting certain provisions of the Trump Administration’s executive orders related to DEI.

On February 14, 2025, the Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR), released a Dear Colleague letter to state and local educational institutions. The guidance and important implications are analyzed below. 

Read our latest law alert summarizing new executive order developments and their implications for institutions, including key timelines to note.

Within hours of taking office, President Trump issued executive orders impacting educational institutions. Robbins Schwartz attorneys are closely monitoring the executive actions, and have identified two orders that administrators should be aware of.

On January 9th, a federal district court in Kentucky invalidated the 2024 Title IX regulations nationwide, ruling them unlawful for exceeding the Department of Education's authority, violating the Constitution, and being arbitrarily and capriciously enacted. Read more here.

The Illinois General Assembly amended Section 3-27.1 of the Public Community College Act to permit electronic submission of sealed construction bids, provided they comply with bid document authorization, electronic security measures, and secure receipt procedures. Read more here.

On April 19, 2024, the U.S. Department of Education under President Biden’s Administration released its regulations implementing Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. The 2024 Regulations, which went into effect on August 1, 2024, significantly changed the Title IX regulations that were implemented under President Trump’s Administration in 2020. Given the results of the Presidential election, the 2024 Regulations face an uncertain future.

The Governmental Joint Purchasing Act in Illinois has been amended by Public Act 103-0865, effective January 1, 2025, to provide governmental units greater flexibility and ease compliance when engaging in cooperative purchasing programs by allowing vendor selection based on qualifications and suitability rather than solely on competitive bidding rankings. Read more here.

Early this year, the Department of Labor (DOL) revised the regulations issued under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) implementing the exemptions from overtime pay for executive, administrative, and professional employees.

In August 2024, the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board issued a memo outlining new reporting requirements for law enforcement employers, including municipalities and colleges, when officers take military or medical leave of 30 days or more. Read more in our latest law alert.