Education Department probes schools for concealing student records from parents
Education Secretary Linda McMahon reveals the Trump administration is actively defending parental rights amidst troubling reports from school districts nationwide. McMahon highlights Department of Justice investigations in Maryland, Michigan and Vermont, where school boards are accused of encouraging gender transitions and hiding information from parents, some even asking sexually explicit questions in surveys for seventh graders.
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An official at Southern Methodist University was captured on undercover video describing what she called “a lot of maneuvering” surrounding the school’s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, according to footage released by Accuracy in Media that purports to show how DEI initiatives continued under different names.
The video, shared Monday by school-choice activist Corey DeAngelis, alleges SMU renamed its “Office of Diversity and Inclusion” the “Office of Cultural Intelligence” as part of an effort to keep DEI programming less visible.
The SMU staff member, who is identified in the video by Accuracy in Media as Danielle Palomo, coordinator for community engagement, social change and intercultural engagement division of student affairs, said, “As you can probably imagine, we’ve had to do a lot of maneuvering in order to remain kinda hidden under a lot of things. But as long as we can keep doing what we’re doing even to a smaller capacity, that is what we’re going to do. We’re going to do our best.”
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A group of university students are seen from behind walking outside on campus as they make their way to class. (iStock)
In the video, an undercover journalist asks Palomo, “I was hoping to see if y’all had any existing like equity trainings that maybe y’all provide for staff faculty and that would give us an idea of what to go off of.”
Palomo responded, “So, all of that is held through our Office of Cultural Intelligence. As you can probably imagine, we’ve had to do a lot of maneuvering in order to remain kind of hidden under a lot of things. But my office in particular, we do — we have had trainings like that in the past with students.”
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A student walks on the Southern Methodist University (SMU) campus Jan. 23, 2007, in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Brian Harkin/Getty Images)
“It’s not going to be as severe, hopefully, as some of the other public universities have had to deal with, but I know that the university is definitely finding its like ‘P’s and Q’s’ and it’s slowly like working to like rename things and maybe do away with things,” Palomo said in the video.
While SMU is a private university, it holds 164 active federal grants totaling nearly $30 million from agencies, including the departments of Defense, Health and Human Services, and Education, according to a May 2025 report by its independent student newspaper, The Daily Campus.
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The outlet also reported that SMU’s research and development spending has more than tripled since 2010, rising from $18.7 million that year to nearly $59.8 million in fiscal year 2023.
The Trump administration has moved to restrict DEI initiatives at federally funded schools through executive actions and Department of Education directives, though federal judges have blocked portions of those efforts amid constitutional and procedural challenges.
A Department of Education sign is displayed outside their federal student aid office on May 18, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Carter/Getty Images)
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The Department of Education has also warned state education departments that they must remove diversity, equity and inclusion policies or potentially lose federal funding.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for SMU said, “SMU does not operate a hidden Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) program. The University does offer activities under the Cultural Intelligence framework that was originally adopted in 2017. Cultural Intelligence focuses on the ability to learn from and understand different perspectives, strengthen relationships, and foster mutual respect and community.”
“Through this approach, we equip members of our University community with the skills to communicate, lead, teach, coach, and innovate effectively across different perspectives and experiences,” the spokesperson added. “As with all University programs, SMU regularly reviews its practices to ensure they align with applicable legal requirements and our institutional mission.”
In a statement to Fox News Digital, school-choice activist Corey DeAngelis said, “The Trump Administration should pull every dollar of federal funding from universities that keep pushing DEI after pretending they shut it down. The radical left running these campuses is not rooting out Marxist DEI ideology. They are moving the goalposts, renaming offices, and hiding the same agenda under new labels like ‘cultural intelligence.’”
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Education activist Corey DeAngelis accused Southern Methodist University of renaming DEI offices to avoid scrutiny from the Trump administration. (Getty Images/Dominic Gwinn)
He added, “SMU tuition is $63,736. Parents might be surprised to learn they are paying that much for a Christian university that is still pushing divisive far-left ideology. SMU also takes more than $25 million in federal funding each year. A school charging that kind of tuition does not need taxpayer money to keep DEI alive under another name. If they want to keep the ideology, they can do it without federal funds.”
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Fox News Digital reached out to Palomo for comment.
