2026 CEO Civil Rights Fellowship Accepting Applications

Center for Equal OpportunityAbout CEOUSA

It is with great joy that the Center for Equal Opportunity (CEO) announces and begins accepting applications today for its 2026 Civil Rights Fellowship. The program, which will take place in August of 2026 is intended for law students with an interest in a career in a public, private, or nonprofit setting where their instruction and training can be shared with the public, the courts, and/or through policy development. LEARN MORE Related posts: TESTIMONY OF ROGER CLEGG, PRESIDENT AND GENERAL COUNSEL, CENTER FOR EQUAL OPPORTUNITY BEFORE THE U.S. COMMISSION ON CIVIL RIGHTS REGARDING THE PROPOSED EMPLOYMENT NON-DISCRIMINATION ACT Where there’s smoke, …

David Rubenstein profiles Linda Chavez on C-SPAN

Center for Equal OpportunityUncategorized

CEO chairman Linda Chavez will be profiled for one hour this Sunday on America’s Book Club with David Rubenstein on C-SPAN at 6:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. ET. She will be discussing her decades long career in public service, her work at CEO, and her nonfiction and fiction books with prominent businessman, lawyer and philanthropist, David Rubenstein. Please check your local listings. From C-SPAN’s announcement: Linda Chavez is an author and former Reagan administration official who held several positions, leading the White House Public Liaison office, serving as staff director of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, and chairing the National Commission on Migrant Education. She was …

CEO chairman slams DEI on PBS

Center for Equal OpportunityUncategorized

CEO chairman Linda Chavez was on PBS this week to discuss, among other current events, the problems with DEI. Chavez, a regular panelist on PBS’s “To the Contrary” said: “I’m a longtime critic of DEI. I spent 25 years as a Director at Fortune 500 companies. I was the chair of the governance committee. Half of our board members were female—but we didn’t use DEI—we cast a wider net, making sure that we included people who could add value to the company with their expertise. And we got terrific people.” Chavez added: “The problem with DEI policies, certainly we saw it …

CEO welcomes new Visiting Economist

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CEO is happy to announce the commencement of a new research project in support of equality in higher education post Students for Fair Admissions. Simon Laird is joining CEO as our new Visiting Economist. He will be spearheading CEO’s research into racial preferences in scholarship awards in professional programs. Simon has his Master’s degree in Economics from George Mason and is currently completing his Ph.D. in Economics, also at George Mason. We are thrilled to welcome him to the CEO team. Related posts: Politicized external review panels as unguided “diversity” missiles: California university administrators remain ultra-slow learners Peter Abernathy joins CEO as …

CEO Media Blitz to Reach Broader Audience

Center for Equal OpportunityUncategorized

The Center for Equal Opportunity has been stepping up its media efforts to take our message to an even broader audience. CEO Chairman Linda Chavez appeared on the BBC News Channel several times recently to discuss recent court rulings to rein in immigration enforcement activities in Minnesota. On Sunday, February 22, Ms. Chavez will be profiled for an hour by philanthropist David M. Rubinstein on CSPAN’s America’s Book World, where she will discuss her work at CEO, her long career in civil rights, and her books. Check your local listings. CEO general counsel Shawna Bray was recently quoted prominently in …

CEO’s Shawna Bray quoted in Washington Post on Illegal DEI

Center for Equal OpportunityGovernment Activity

From Washington Post Article 12/30/25 Why Trump’s EEOC wants to talk to White men about discrimination Armed with a quorum and GOP majority, Chair Andrea Lucas is pressing new priorities — such as dismantling DEI — that critics say have turned the agency’s mission “on its head.” In mid-December, the nation’s leading workplace civil rights enforcer took to social media to pose a question: “Are you a white male who has experienced discrimination at work based on your race or sex?” Andrea Lucas, chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, appeared in the video, urging those who have to contact …

The Rise of Latino Conservatism

Center for Equal OpportunityKeeping Up with CEO

CEO chairman Linda Chavez visited Washington University in St. Louis this month to discuss rising conservativism among Hispanics and the role immigration policy may play in that movement.  Chavez addressed a packed meeting of the Federalist Society and Latin American Law Student Association.  Joining Chavez was Washington University Law School professor Sheldon Evans.  Chavez told the audience that the rise of Latino conservatism has been taking place over decades, a phenomenon she chronicled in her first book Out of the Barrio: Toward a New Politics of Hispanic Assimilation. She noted that more than 50 years ago, President Richard Nixon received nearly one-third of Mexican Americans’ votes in his re-election, while both …

Linda Chavez on Federalist Society’s Explainer Series

Center for Equal OpportunityGovernment Activity

Linda Chavez discusses proposed regulatory changes to federal contracting rules following the Trump Administration’s revoking Executive Order 11246. The program is part of the Federalist Society’s Explainer Series. Joining Chavez is Brett Sweringen, formerly of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). They cover the history of both the OFCCP and the now revoked Executive order 11246, the scope of the recently proposed regulatory changes, and the potential implications of these changes.  Related posts: Bad Old Regulations CEO Applauds Trump Administration’s Civil Rights Actions US v Metcalf TESTIMONY OF ROGER CLEGG, PRESIDENT AND GENERAL COUNSEL, CENTER FOR EQUAL OPPORTUNITY …

Photos from CEO Fellowship 2025

Center for Equal OpportunityKeeping Up with CEO

CEO recently hosted its Fourth Annual Civil Rights Fellowship in Washington, D.C.  CEO Fellows heard from a variety of experts in constitutional and civil rights law and history as well as receiving media training. Our instructors included:  Craig Trainor, Nominee Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Department of Housing and Urban Development   Eric Dreiband, Former Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, Department of Justice  Kenneth Marcus, Former Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Department of Education  Gail Heriot, Commissioner, U.S. Civil Rights Commission, Professor of Law, University of San Diego Law School  Maimon Schwarzschild, Professor of Law, University of San Diego …

The Truth About Affirmative Action

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by Jason L. Riley, CEO Board Member – this post originally appeared on the WSJ. He requires colleges to submit data proving they don’t engage in racial discrimination. One reason it took so long for the Supreme Court to ban the consideration of race in university admissions, which it finally did two years ago in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, is that the justices previously took college administrators at their word. It is a mistake that the Trump administration doesn’t intend to repeat. A memorandum President Trump signed last week directs colleges that receive federal funding to submit admissions data to …