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Idaho Board of Education bans DEI offices and initiatives in all public universities

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Idaho Board of Education bans DEI offices and initiatives in all public universities

The Idaho Board of Education approved efforts to ban diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in public universities on Wednesday. 

After months of debating, the board unanimously agreed on a resolution that Idaho institutions cannot “require specific structures or activities related to DEI.”

In summary, institutions “shall establish and maintain equality of opportunity for all students regardless of personal identity characteristics,” “ensure that no central offices, policies, procedures, or initiatives are dedicated to DEI ideology” and “ensure that no employee or student is required to declare gender identity or preferred pronouns.”

The board defined DEI ideology as “any approach that prioritizes ‘personal identity characteristics’ (race, color, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, or gender identity) over individual merit.”

The Idaho Board of Education unanimously approved the resolution to scale back on programs that discriminate based on race. (iStock)

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FLORIDA PERMANENTLY BANS FUNDING FOR DEI IN STATE SCHOOLS

In addition to banning mandatory gender identification, the board also prohibited diversity statements in hiring practices or any decisions regarding employment or education based on “personal identity characteristics.” 

The board also approved a resolution that mandated protections for free speech and expression on campuses.

“Institutions shall maintain political neutrality, protect speakers’ rights to free expression, protect the safety of those participating in constitutionally protected speech, introduce campus communities to diverse viewpoints, and establish programs designed to educate students and faculty about the institutions’ role as the marketplace of ideas,” it read.

The board acknowledged that the resolution would not prohibit universities from promoting non-discriminatory activities, offering scholarships or allowing student clubs based on “political or social issues.”

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All changes are expected to be implemented by June 30, 2025.

In a press release given to Fox News Digital, the board reiterated its support for the resolution and optimism for the universities moving forward.

University of Idaho school sign on overcast day

Public universities will be required to uphold freedom of expression on campuses. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)

“I believe our actions as a Board today are a strong signal to all Idaho students that our institutions are prepared to meet whatever needs they have when they walk through the door. I am looking forward to seeing our universities implement these resolutions while we continue working on the issue as a Board,” Board President Dr. Linda Clark said.

“I am proud of our institutions for stepping up and making meaningful changes to their institutions through these resolutions,” Joshua Whitworth, Director of the Office of the State Board of Education said. “By working closely with our institutions and the Governor’s Office, the Board has made a commitment that every student has the support that they need to succeed.”

The resolution was originally adopted in April 2023 and focused primarily on prohibiting diversity statements in hiring. The following year, the resolution was amended to codify the language and later included prohibiting diversity statements in admissions.

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IOWA BOARD OF REGENTS APPROVES RECOMMENDATIONS TO SCALE BACK DEI INITIATIVES AT STATE UNIVERSITIES

In November, the Board introduced drafts of the new resolution and received feedback from both university leaders and students. Since that time, several universities have already begun scaling back on DEI initiatives.

Boise State University

Boise State University closed its Gender Equity and Student Equity centers in November. (Sarah A. Miller/Idaho Statesman/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

On Tuesday, ahead of the resolution, Boise State University announced in an email that the Student Equity Center and the Gender Equity Center had been closed during Thanksgiving break.

“We all have heard the conversations taking place this year across the nation related to diversity, equity and inclusion and higher education,” BSU administrators said in the email. “The Idaho State Board of Education has developed resolutions for Idaho universities, and we have provided feedback. We remain steadfast in our commitment to serving all students while seeking to be responsive to our governing board’s expectations.”

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Oregon

Foothills of the Northern Blue Mountains of Oregon under a high wind watch Monday and Tuesday

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Foothills of the Northern Blue Mountains of Oregon under a high wind watch Monday and Tuesday


The National Weather Service issued a high wind watch at 9:29 p.m. on Sunday valid from Monday 4 p.m. until Tuesday 10 a.m. for Foothills of the Northern Blue Mountains of Oregon.

The weather service states, “Southeast winds 25 to 40 mph with gusts of 45 to 65 mph possible for the base of the northern Blue Mountains of Oregon.”

“Damaging winds could blow down trees and power lines. Widespread power outages are possible. Travel could be difficult, especially for high profile vehicles,” describes the weather service. “Monitor the latest forecasts and warnings for updates.”

Advance Local Weather Alerts is a service provided by United Robots, which uses machine learning to compile the latest data from the National Weather Service.

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Utah

Utah Hockey Club Owner Ryan Smith Builds Buzz With Free Ticket Giveaway

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Utah Hockey Club Owner Ryan Smith Builds Buzz With Free Ticket Giveaway


When you’re the Utah Hockey Club, giving away 2,000 tickets to a regular-season game is a cause for celebration, not alarm.

After all, not every pro sports team team has an unused inventory of ‘single goal view seats’ that it can tap as a tool to help entice new fans.

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It started with a simple tweet from Utah Hockey Club owner Ryan Smith ahead of the club’s home game against the Vancouver Canucks last Wednesday.

In a followup, Smith said that he’d planned to give away the eight seats in his owner’s suite. But when he got more than 700 responses, he decided to open the invitation wider.

In the end, he put 2,000 extra people into Delta Center on top of the usual sold-out crowd of 11,131. And the fans got a good show as Utah staged a third-period rally from a 2-0 deficit before Mikhail Sergachev buried the game-winner on a 2-on-1 with 12 seconds left in overtime.

Acquired in a trade with the Tampa Bay Lightning during the 2024 NHL draft weekend, Sergachev has been a massive difference-maker for the Utah team in its first season in its new home. Helping to fill holes after fellow veteran blueliners John Marino and Sean Durzi went down early with long-term injuries, 26-year-old Sergachev is averaging 25:45 a game, third-most in the entire NHL.

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With eight goals and 26 points in 33 games to date, the two-time Stanley Cup winner is also on pace to match his previous career high of 64 points in a season, set in 2022-23.

Another standout has been goaltender Karel Vejmelka. The 28-year-old now sits second in the NHL with 16.5 goals saved above expected according to MoneyPuck, and has amassed a career-best save percentage of .918.

After their vagabond years in Arizona, including their last two seasons as secondary tenants at 4,600-seat Mullett Arena on the campus of Arizona State University, perhaps it should come as no surprise that the re-established Utah team would come out of the gate as road warriors. Unbeaten in regulation in their last eight games, with a record of 6-0-2, they’re up to 11-6-2 on the road this season.

Utah’s home win over Vancouver last Wednesday boosted the squad to 5-5-3 on home ice. The club followed up on Sunday with a 5-4 shootout loss to the Anaheim Ducks, which has the team just outside of the Western Conference wild-card picture with one more game to go before the NHL’s three-day holiday break — hosting the Dallas Stars as part of a 13-game slate on Monday.

On Dec. 2, the Stars earned a 2-1 win at the Delta Center — Utah’s only regulation loss since Nov. 24. The Western Conference standings are tight, but the new club is trending positively toward making the playoffs in its inaugural season. The Coyotes’ only post-season appearance in the franchise’s last 12 years came as part of the expanded 24-team field in the 2020 pandemic bubble, when they eliminated the Nashville Predators in the best-of-three qualifying round before falling to the Colorado Avalanche.

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Of the ice, Smith and his wife and co-owner, Ashley, have already helped make winners out of their 31 fellow NHL owners. Smith Entertainment Group’s $1.2 billion purchase of Arizona’s hockey assets last April fueled a 140 percent increase in the valuation of the franchise — a key metric in the league’s 44 percent increase in average valuations in 2024 per Forbes estimates, which dramatically outpaces the growth of the other North American sports over the last year.

The rosy economic picture for the Utah Hockey Club and the league as a whole bodes well for the next round of collective bargaining. While the current deal is not set to expire until the end of the 2025-26 season, commissioner Gary Bettman indicated at the league’s board of governors’ meetings in Florida earlier this month that he and NHL Players’ Association executive director Marty Walsh plan to start formal discussions in February, with an eye toward potentially completing an agreement before the end of this hockey year.



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Washington

Denzel Washington Receives Minister’s License, Gets Baptized

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Denzel Washington Receives Minister’s License, Gets Baptized


Denzel Washington can now add ministry to his long resume.

On Saturday, the Gladiator II star was baptized, receiving a certificate of baptism, as well as a minister’s license, meaning that he can later get ordained. The event took place at the Kelly Temple Church of God in Christ located in New York City’s Harlem, per Today. First Jurisdiction Church of God in Christ Eastern New York livestreamed the service on Facebook.

“In one week I turn 70. It took a while, but I’m here,” the prolific actor said. Washington also thanked his wife, Pauletta Washington.

The two-time Academy Award winner has been open about his faith before, telling Esquire last month that while talk of religion in Hollywood is rare, he is unflinching in his resolve to share his beliefs and experience.

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“I’m unafraid. I don’t care what anyone thinks. See, talking about the fear part of it—you can’t talk like that and win Oscars. You can’t talk like that and party. You can’t say that in this town,” he wrote in an essay relayed by the magazine.

He continued at the time, “It’s not fashionable. It’s not sexy. But that doesn’t mean people in Hollywood don’t believe. There’s no such thing called Hollywood anyway. What does that even mean? That to me means a street called Hollywood Boulevard. It’s not like we all meet somewhere and discuss what we believe. So I don’t know how many other actors have faith. I didn’t do no poll. How would I find that out? I mean, there’s no Church Actor Meetings I’ve been to.”

Upcoming on Washington’s docket is Spike Lee’s Apple Original Films/A24 project Highest 2 Lowest, alongside A$AP Rocky & Ice Spice, as well as Black Panther 3, his involvement in which he accidentally let slip.



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