VICTOR JOECKS: Lombardo undercuts Trump’s anti-DEI efforts

Rooting out discriminatory diversity, equity and inclusion programs should be a top Republican priority. Unfortunately, it isn’t for Gov. Joe Lombardo.

Last month, the U.S. Department of Education asked states and school districts to certify that they don’t discriminate based on race. It highlighted as impermissible DEI programs that favor one race over another. It warned that continued racial discrimination could result in the loss of federal funding.

This should be easy. Racial discrimination is wrong and illegal. Yet Steve Canavero, Nevada’s interim superintendent of public instruction, refused to sign the certificate. He even sent a condescending response letter blowing off the request. The Nevada Department of Education, he claimed, had recently certified “that it complies with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.” He cited doing so in connection with a 2023 submission of the revised “Consolidated State Plan” and the February 2025 update to the Nevada department’s “General Statement of Federal Assurances.” Further, he asked for guidance on what certain terms meant, saying the requirements “remain ambiguous.”

Lombardo’s office didn’t respond when I asked if he agreed with Canavero’s decision not to sign the certification. Not the actions of someone interested in stamping out DEI. That’s unfortunate because there’s plenty of it in Nevada’s system.

Consider the Clark County School District. The job description for its “assistant superintendent, equity and diversity” says the position will collaborate “with the human resources team and provide guidance on the recruitment and retention of underrepresented groups and monitor, evaluate and assess the adequacy of the diversity of candidates in the screening and hiring process.” The district’s anti-racism policy states the district will “develop and implement strategies to increase the diversity” of its staff. The policy’s definition of diversity includes race.

Note to Canavero and Lombardo. These are examples of DEI initiatives that favor one race over another. They are violations of Title VI, which prohibits racial discrimination in “any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.” The prescribed penalty for ignoring the law is the termination or withholding of federal funding.

Then I looked into Canavero’s claims about how Nevada has previously certified its compliance with Title VI. The 2023 Consolidated State Plan mentioned “Title VI” only once and in a very different context.

“Title VI is not explicitly referenced in the Nevada Department of Education’s 2023 Consolidated State Plan,” state department officials admitted in response to my questions. They insisted that approval of the plan “is contingent on assurance to all applicable federal laws.” Translated: Canavero never expected someone to check his sources.

The update to the 2025 General Statement of Federal Assurances isn’t much better. It doesn’t mention Title VI, although it requires grant recipients to agree they won’t discriminate based on race.

What’s happening in Nevada shows why the federal department was justified in asking states and school districts to certify compliance with Title VI. That effort is tied up in federal court. But don’t expect that to last forever. The U.S. Supreme Court isn’t going to overturn the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Lombardo should use this delay to eradicate DEI in Nevada education. He should have been doing that for the past two years. His refusal to do so doesn’t make policy or political sense. The public is against DEI schemes. In 2020, California rejected an affirmative action initiative by 15 points. Trump won a decisive victory in 2024, including in Nevada, while campaigning against DEI.

If Lombardo and education officials don’t change course, Nevada will deserve to lose its federal education funding. And snarky letters won’t be of much help then.

Contact Victor Joecks at vjoecks@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4698. Follow @victorjoecks on X.