The U.S. State Department has torn up a set of Biden-administration rules that shaped how American diplomats were trained, evaluated and promoted, swapping diversity-focused standards for what officials call a merit-first system. In an Aug. 13 statement, the agency said an internal review had found diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility (DEI) material embedded across Foreign Service coursework, hiring standards and performance evaluations — and that all of it has now been removed.
What the Department Announced
The department's own account is unsparing. Its release argues that the old material pulled focus from real diplomatic work and, in the agency's words, "shamefully denigrated the United States." Officials say the DEI framework had become woven into the Foreign Service's culture over the prior four years, touching everything from orientation coursework to promotion boards.
Spokesperson Tommy Pigott gave Fox News Digital the outlet that first obtained the internal guidance documents — a blunter version of the same argument, saying American envoys should be focused on national interests rather than "demonstrating adherence to woke political dogmas." Fox News Digital's review of the underlying paperwork found that senior officials, or "Front Offices," had been instructed to raise social inclusion, racial and gender equity, and LGBTQI+ topics in meetings with foreign governments, particularly in countries where the department judged those subjects sensitive. Offices were also expected to support the formation of internal "DEIA Councils."
Where the Rules Came From
The rollback didn't start this month. It traces to a memorandum President Trump signed in March 2025 ordering the Secretary of State to drop the "Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility" precept from Foreign Service tenure and promotion scoring, on the theory that government hiring should be "based solely on merit." A same-day White House fact sheet singled out a 2023 comment from the department's then–Chief Diversity Officer, who had said promotion eligibility hinged on documenting DEIA contributions.
That DEIA precept wasn't simply deleted — it was replaced. Officers are now scored on five criteria, and the fifth, according to Federal News Network, is officially termed "fidelity." One Foreign Service officer, granted anonymity by that outlet to speak candidly, called the new scorecard "totally backwards" and said it effectively rewards loyalty to the administration's own agenda rather than subject-matter expertise. The change had real financial consequences: Fox News reported in November 2025 that roughly 295 employees who'd been marked down under the old DEIA criterion — out of more than 7,300 reviewed for promotion in 2024 — received pay increases, administrative promotions or formal commendations as restitution.
Two more pieces followed in 2026. A rule entered into the Federal Register in January blocked federal money from funding equity-focused programming in foreign aid grants. And in April, the department overhauled the Foreign Service Officer Test itself.
What the Old Curriculum Actually Contained
The department's internal review, released alongside the August announcement, got specific about what it was scrapping. According to the agency's own fact sheet and corroborating reports from thethe Washington Examiner, instructors had been given a reading list that went well beyond generic diversity theory: Robin DiAngelo's White Fragility and the Rules of Engagement, along with pieces titled In Defense of Looting, The Case for Reparations, How White Women Tears Oppress People of Color, and How to Be Anti-Racist in Humanitarian Aid.
The instructional load added up to roughly a day and a half within the five-week orientation course for new officers, plus a full day inside a separate five-day public-diplomacy program, per multiple outlets including Just the News. Coursework touched on Black Lives Matter terminology translated into other languages, role-playing exercises on racism at home and abroad, and a vocabulary list flagging terms like "illegal alien" as problematic. Instructors were also coached to use invented pronouns such as "Ze" and "Zirs," and staff were urged to practice what the department called "microaffirmations" to counter unconscious bias.
A Test Change That's Still Disputed
In April, the department rewrote the Foreign Service Officer Test — the entrance exam for prospective diplomats — adding a logic and reasoning section while dropping the situational-judgment portion and personal-narrative essay requirement. Officials said this stripped out questions that had measured alignment with diversity goals.
That claim didn't go unchallenged. Per CNN's reporting at the time, the American Foreign Service Association — the union representing Foreign Service employees — pushed back specifically on the idea that the prior exam ever tested for "ideological agendas" in the first place, saying it saw "a far greater risk that political ideology could now be introduced" into the selection process going forward. AFSA also objected to a separate requirement forcing candidates who'd already passed the old test to sit for the new one to stay eligible, calling it a departure from merit principles.
The Union's Response to the August Announcement
Following the Aug. 13 release, AFSA raised a related but distinct concern, per The Epoch Times: whether trimming so much material from orientation would still leave new officers with a solid grounding in U.S. foreign policy, or whether the revised curriculum simply substitutes one set of ideological priorities for another. The union's statements across both episodes suggest its underlying worry isn't really about DEI content disappearing — it's about what fills the vacuum left behind.
Part of a Broader Rollback
None of this happened in isolation. On his first day back in office, Trump signed Executive Order 14151, directing every federal agency to dismantle DEI offices and associated programming, a mandate that has since reached dozens of agencies beyond the State Department. That same day, he signed a separate order declaring that the federal government would recognize only two sexes for official purposes, ending the option to mark "X" on passports and other federal documents.
For now, the department says it's inviting new applicants who meet the revised standards to apply, framing the changes as modernization rather than retreat. Whether the new curriculum and "fidelity" precept produce a stronger or more politicized diplomatic corps is a question even the administration's critics acknowledge won't be answerable until officers trained under the new system have been in the field for a while.
