Iowa State University is the most recent subject of a video circulating on social media claiming the university’s LGBT center director found “loopholes” in Iowa’s anti-DEI law.
The video: A four-minute and six-second video clip published by Accuracy in Media (AIM), a conservative news nonprofit, shows Susan Harper, the former director of Iowa State’s Center for LGBTQIA+ Student Success, commonly referred to as “The Center,” on camera talking about “finding loopholes in the laws.”
“Iowa’s new anti-Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion law hasn’t put a stop to Iowa State University’s agenda, as Accuracy in Media uncovered in a new hidden camera video,” according to AIM in an August 11 publication.
An AIM investigator spoke to Harper on camera without her knowledge, speaking on DEI laws and Iowa State.
“We are finding ways to be in compliance with the law and still do the work that needs to be done,” Harper told AIM.
The video shows a conversation between Harper and the “investigator” as well as intense music and cuts including captions such as “At Iowa State University, DEI hasn’t ended. It’s just gone underground” and “This is not about inclusion. This is about defiance.”
The end of the AIM publication says “Tell them [Board of Regents] that radical administrators should not be plotting ways to circumvent the law in order to advance their divisive ideology.”
Iowa State reaction: According to a statement from Iowa State University in a Facebook post on August 11, “all programming in the center was discontinued and the position of the director, which was held by the employee when the video was filmed, was eliminated in December 2024.”
The AIM video has no time stamp, so it is not known when it was taken.
The university statement says, “based on the location and nature of the conversation, it appears to have been filmed approximately a year ago, prior to the Board of Regents December 31 deadline for compliance.”
“Iowa State University complies with all state and federal laws,” Iowa State’s statement says. “We have taken actions, approved by the Iowa Board of Regents, to achieve compliance with recent laws and directives. Iowa State continues to monitor and take actions when necessary to ensure continued compliance.”
At the University of Iowa: The video’s release comes after a July 31 video of Cory Lockwood, the Iowa Memorial Union senior associate director at the University of Iowa. The video was posted by Townhall, a conservative news outlet.
The Gazette reported Lockwood was placed on leave the day the video was posted.
Fox News aired a similar video just days prior. On its July 29 evening segment, Fox showed a video of Drea Tinoco, the UI assistant director of Leadership and Student Organization Development, talking about how the university was skirting around the DEI laws.
Tinoco was placed on leave the same day.
Reynolds reaction: Gov. Kim Reynolds condemned the remarks made in the July 29 video, saying she would refer the matter to Attorney General Brenna Bird.
“I’m appalled by the remarks made in this video by a University of Iowa employee who blatantly admits to defying DEI restrictions I signed into law on May 9, 2024,” she said.
Regents reaction: The Board of Regents had a special meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 12, to hear revisions of DEI policies introduced in June that would prohibit teachings related to DEI or other controversial topics — upsetting students, staff, members of the public and lawmakers — following the videos’ surfacing.
Referencing the videos, Regent David Barker, who was recently tapped by President Donald Trump to serve as assistant secretary for postsecondary education, said there was “at least until very recently, a culture existed, to some extent, that was in conflict with board directives, state law and federal policy.”
Under the revised policy, controversial topics may be taught as long as they are connected to course content and “fosters critical thinking and avoids indoctrination of one perspective,” and should represent different perspectives on the topic.
“If we hear of any instances of not following these policies, the Board Office will audit and review the circumstances,” Board of Regents President Sherry Bates said in a statement. “If the Board Office audit determines the policy is not being followed, I will not be passive in addressing the problem.
“I will set up a task force of Board members to correct the situation and ensure compliance with the policy. Ensuring that our students can learn and think for themselves is paramount to our mission.”
