University of Virginia President James E. Ryan has informed the school’s board that he will resign, following a Department of Justice civil rights probe into the university’s refusal to dismantle diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.

Ryan, who has been president of the college since 2018, was accused by administration officials of refusing to comply with the President Trump’s orders to eliminate DEI initiatives. Board members have in recent weeks pressured Ryan to resign, according to a New York Times report, fearing backlash from the Trump administration should the school refuse to curb DEI.

The University of Virginia’s board voted to close the school’s DEI office in March, after President Donald Trump passed an executive order that urged colleges to eliminate DEI or risk federal funding. Per the vote, “permissible” programs would be rehoused in other departments.

But Ryan simply rebranded DEI initiatives, instead of eliminating them altogether, according to America First Legal, a conservative nonprofit law firm dedicated eliminating DEI from major American institutions.

“Rebranding discrimination does not make it legal, and changing a label doesn’t change the substance,” Megan Redshaw, an attorney at America First Legal, said in a statement last month. “UVA’s use of sanitized language and recycled job titles is a deliberate attempt to sidestep the law.”

Then, in April, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon and Deputy Assistant Attorney General Gregory W. Brown sent a letter to the school, pressing the University of Virginia to specify how it eliminated DEI positions, and which DEI positions had been transferred to other departments.

DOJ officials heard from some members of the board that the university could better adhere to Trump’s executive order if Ryan was ousted. With Ryan out, DOJ officials believe that they’ll be able to conduct an unhindered investigation into the university’s DEI practices.

A diversity advocate and former dean of the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Ryan negotiated with the DOJ in “bad faith,” administration officials said. His resignation will be effective immediately but “no later than August 15, 2025,” the Times reported.

Although the Trump administration has successfully stripped funding from universities in a bid to cut back on DEI-related programs, Ryan’s ouster marks one of the first times the Trump administration has specifically targeted a college president.

Democratic Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine of Virginia released a joint statement condemning the administration for pressuring the university to part ways with Ryan.

“Virginia’s economy and prosperity depend on the strength and integrity of our higher education system,” the senators said. “It is outrageous that officials in the Trump Department of Justice demanded the Commonwealth’s globally recognized university remove President Ryan — a strong leader who has served UVA honorably and moved the university forward—over ridiculous ‘culture war’ traps.

“Decisions about UVA’s leadership belong solely to its Board of Visitors, in keeping with Virginia’s well-established and respected system of higher education governance. This is a mistake that hurts Virginia’s future.”