Officials renamed GW’s annual Diversity Summit the OneGW Community Summit after postponing the event twice and signaling plans to rebrand amid President Donald Trump’s attack on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
GW’s 10th annual summit, which officials scheduled for March 26-27 after postponing it twice as they worked to “reimagine a new opportunity” for the diversity-focused event, will focus on “community, culture and inclusion.” Interim Provost John Lach in November said officials were adapting the summit to expand beyond diversity to topics like civil discourse, a revamp coming as the Trump administration intensifies its DEI crackdown, including a DOJ review of diversity’s role in GW’s admissions practices.
GW’s revamp and removal of the word “diversity” from the summit’s title come as universities face mounting pressure from Trump to eliminate DEI on their campuses through executive orders, targeted investigations and stripping federal funding. Students have voiced concerns that GW’s recent actions — including halting the search for a top diversity official, pushing the summit and shuttering the law school’s DEI website — signal a wide-reaching institutional rollback of DEI.
The Hatchet directed questions to Lach about the summit’s name change and programming, but University spokesperson Kathy Fackelmann returned the request. She said officials “intentionally connected” this year’s summit to the University’s strategic framework, which GW launched in October aiming to foster a stronger sense of community by investing in initiatives that “deepen school spirit and belonging.”
“At this year’s Summit, we are eager for all students, faculty, and staff at GW to come together across differences to actively listen, challenge each other, learn from new perspectives, and create room for disagreement to be a respectful part of our GW culture,” Fackelmann said in an email.
Fackelmann declined to comment on why officials removed the word “diversity” from the summit’s title, whether the change was influenced by Trump administration pressure to curb DEI, which officials were involved in the decision or what community input, if any, they sought when redesigning the summit’s programming.
University spokesperson Shannon McClendon told the Hatchet in November the reimagined summit would be “shaped by community input” but did not specify what that input would look like or how officials would seek it out. It is unclear if officials consulted any student organizations or community members about the reimagined summit.
Fackelmann said officials are still finalizing programming for the summit, noting that opportunities for engagement, learning and dialogue will take “multiple forms,” but she declined to provide details on specific sessions or initiatives. She added that the summit’s schedule will include sessions led by community members from GW and the D.C., Maryland and Virginia metropolitan area.
Officials detailed some of the planned changes to the event on a new “Community Summit” website — previously named the Diversity Summit website — including a new GW Community Impact Award and applications for community members to serve as “storytellers” at the summit by giving a three to four minute speech.
The summit’s website, which officials unveiled Friday, states the event will honor the coexistence of “multiple truths” and the ability of community members to come together and “build as OneGW” — a term officials launched with the University’s new strategic framework. The website states the organizers hope the summit will be “affirming to all” across all identities and viewpoints.
“Remaining committed to our longstanding values, the OneGW Summit: Community, Culture & Inclusion will continue to be grounded in learning, dialogue, research, storytelling, and education on identity, social issues, diverse viewpoints and sustainable positive action,” the summit’s website reads.
Since Trump took office for his second term, five of GW’s 12 peer schools have renamed their DEI offices to remove the word “diversity,” and three entirely shuttered their offices.
The Department of Justice launched a Title VI compliance review into GW’s admissions practices related to DEI last month, placing GW among over 50 other universities the DOJ accuses of discrimination in admissions practices by having DEI policies. Officials also confirmed in August they were conducting a “careful review” of a July DOJ memo warning that institutions that receive federal funding, including GW, could face “significant legal risks” if they engaged in DEI practices.
Officials previously postponed the summit in two consecutive semesters — in spring and fall 2025 — amid Trump’s anti-DEI moves and an ongoing vacancy at the top of GW’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Community Engagement, which has been without a vice provost to lead the office since July 2024. Officials indefinitely paused the search to fill the role last October.
When officials in September postponed the summit a second time to spring 2026, they declined to comment on whether Trump’s anti-DEI policies influenced their decision to delay it. A University spokesperson in late October said officials halted the search for a new ODECE vice provost due to internal and external factors that prompted a reevaluation of programs, including updated federal guidance on DEI initiatives.
Students and community members expressed concerns in both spring and fall 2025 that officials were quietly walking back DEI efforts across the University in an attempt to appease the Trump administration by quieting their public support for diversity programs. Staff Council Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Chair Tricia Greenstein asked Lach at the body’s November meeting to address concerns about GW pulling back DEI efforts, and Lach responded by saying the event’s revamping doesn’t signal a rollback but rather a commitment to including “broader notions” of community and inclusion.
“What we’re really doing, it’s not a retreat from DEI, I think it’s more of a bringing together of all of these important factors and thinking about what we can do to support all members of our community and help them thrive here,” Lach said at the meeting.
Officials initially slated the Diversity Summit for Oct. 16-18, 2025, according to a May release, after McClendon confirmed to The Hatchet in April that GW would host the summit in fall 2025, breaking from the last couple of years of hosting it in the spring.
The summit’s website states officials will award six Community Impact Awards at the event, giving one to an undergraduate student, a graduate student, a staff member, a faculty member, an alumn and a “D.C. partner.” The website is soliciting nominees for each award, with nominations due Feb. 27, and states that a “University-wide committee” will select the winners in each category.
Fackelmann said the University-wide committee will be comprised of students, faculty and staff but did not share how many would serve on each committee or who would select them.
The website states nominees for the award should be community members who have addressed a “critical” social, economic, health, education or environmental need, pursued a project that benefited “the greater good,” have driven change through research, service or mentorship or advocated for and effected change within a specific community.
The summit’s website also states that it invites all community members to apply to serve as a “storyteller” during the summit, which will allow them to speak to attendees about their personal story during a short time slot. The website states that all stories should be personal, connect with the purpose of the summit and specifically highlight community, culture and inclusion.
“We seek GW community members from all backgrounds, viewpoints and lived experiences,” the website reads. “In each story, we want storytellers to share their vision for community and display an unwavering commitment to inclusion.”
