Underfunded and understaffed: the UH Women's Center struggles to stay afloat

UH’s former Women’s Center still holds its original sign, as of Sept. 10, 2026, despite facing oncoming changes with DEI restrictions. Alec Johnson/Photos Editor/Ka Leo O Hawaiʻi This article was originally published in Ka Leo's October 2026 print issue.The University of Hawaii at Mānoa Women’s Center is falling apart, and more on-campus organizations may follow. In January 2025, the Trump administration signed an executive order stripping federal funding from any program supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Programs that support minority-serving institutions were to lose $350 million in federal funding. A Dear Colleague Letter from acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor was sent to 60 universities, notifying them that they must stop using “race preferences and stereotypes” in a number of institutional operations, including administrative support, to continue receiving federal funding.

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