Associate Professor Vanessa Perry speaks in front of the University of Arizona Administration Building on Thursday, March 27, 2025.
Calls to maintain cultural centers and diversity, equity, and inclusion programs at the University of Arizona escalated today as a group of students, faculty and staff carried printed copies of a petition to the administration building.
The letter, sent to President Suresh Garimella, Provost Ron Marx, and the Arizona Board of Regents, urges higher education leaders to take a stronger stance against ongoing crackdowns on diversity, equity, and inclusion programs by the Trump Administration and Republican lawmakers.
An organizing group under the name Wildcats4DEIA said the Google Form letter received 3,314 signatures, as of this morning.
According to Director of African American Student Affairs Jamaica DelMar, the letter was previously sent to the administration in February.
University officials confirmed they had received the petition at that time, but DelMar said they received no response from university leaders, and hopes this time they will be more responsive.
“I personally, would love for the President to support our values. We haven't heard, I mean, I have no clue where he stands,” DelMar said.
VIEW LARGER Wildcats4DEIA held a protest in front of the University of Arizona administration building on Thursday, March 27, 2025. The Wildcats4DEIA, DelMar said, represents a wider university community of faculty, staff and students.
At the same time a similar, but separate, list of demands to administration came from the UA DEIA Collective, which is mostly full time staff of the Cultural Resource Centers, according to Del Mar.
Those demands, posted March 20 to their Instagram page, most notably include maintaining employment and benefits for students and staff of the cultural resource centers and a “commitment to the existence and investment in critical student support programs” at the centers. They also gave the administration an April 1 deadline to respond.
But both groups are calling for similar protections, DelMar said, even if it is a tough line to walk.
“I can't tell you exactly where that solution lies. There has to be a solution somewhere,” she said. “I would hope that the people that run our universities could come together with a solution that will protect our students and also allow us to provide them with the education that they're paying for in a safe environment for everyone.”
University spokesperson Mitch Zak confirmed the administration received the signed petitions on Thursday, and said the university appreciates community input.
“We appreciate the input from our community as we consider the changing policy landscape and must navigate these changes in the manner that allows us to best carry out our mission to serve and support students. The U of A receives over $330 million in state funding as well as hundreds of millions in federal research grants and other essential resources. Additionally, 13,000 students, representing 22% of the student body, receive federal Pell Grant funding. As we work to comply with the laws that govern us, we will continue to be guided by the compassion and respect we have for all members of our university community,” the statement reads.
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