Trump Administration's DEI Crackdown Threatens Program for Autistic Students in STEM

Facing an Existential Threat

The Frist Center for Autism and Innovation, a program at Vanderbilt University dedicated to helping autistic students succeed in STEM careers, is facing a major challenge due to the Trump administration's efforts to curtail diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.

Keivan Stassun, the center's founding director and a renowned physicist, expressed concern that the administration's focus on ending DEI and its cuts to research grants could jeopardize the center's vital work. He emphasized that the center's mission is not about "woke DEI," but rather about developing a crucial workforce for the nation's science and technology sector.

Stassun, who is also the father of an autistic son, highlighted the personal significance of the center's work. He noted that the center includes many autistic individuals, including its associate director, Dave Caudel.

The center was recently informed that a $4 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to create a model for including neurodivergent people in engineering schools across the U.S. had been suspended. This grant was part of the Broadening Participation in Engineering program, which aims to diversify the engineering field. However, the grant was not officially activated before Trump's executive order limiting DEI programs and Elon Musk's subsequent efforts to eliminate various programs under the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Stassun believes the suspension was due to the program's use of terms like "neurodiversity," "inclusion," "disabilities," and "accessibility," which are deemed "bad DEIA" words by the current administration. This has forced the center to lay off staff, including autistic individuals, which directly contradicts its mission of employing a high representation of neurodivergent individuals.

The suspension of this grant is not an isolated incident. The Frist Center also lost out on a $3 million grant from the NSF's INCLUDES program, which aimed to make STEM fields more representative of the U.S. population. Additionally, a $500,000 grant from the NSF's Research Experiences for Undergraduates program, which provided training in science and technology careers, was also canceled.

These cancellations amount to a total of $7.5 million in lost funding, which will significantly impact the center's ability to fulfill its mission. Stassun emphasized that these programs are crucial for developing a workforce that includes a large and underutilized segment of the American talent pool.

While the NSF claims that the grants are still under review, Stassun remains concerned about the future of the center and the students it serves. He believes that these cuts will not save the government significant amounts of money but will have a devastating impact on the communities that rely on these programs.