Commentary

We Found Out How Woke The University of Minnesota Medical School Really Is

  • By Do No Harm Staff
  • December 5, 2022
  • University of Minnesota Medical School

Just how woke is The University of Minnesota Medical School? Very woke indeed, as it just confirmed to Do No Harm.

Here’s the background. In October 2022, the Association of American Medical Colleges released a report showing that the vast majority of medical schools have embraced identity politics, despite their divisive and even discriminatory nature. The report was based on surveys of specific medical schools, which the AAMC didn’t name.

For the sake of transparency and accountability, Do No Harm submitted freedom of information requests to public medical schools nationwide, including The University of Minnesota Medical School. We asked for a copy of its survey response, so that Minnesota taxpayers and policymakers could learn the truth about this institution.

Here’s what the University of Minnesota Medical School has self-reported:

  • It has adopted racially discriminatory admissions practices under the guise of “affirmative action.” This means it’s potentially lowering standards in the name of diversity, thereby threatening patient health.
  • It has a “dedicated office, staff, or resources” dedicated to DEI. This means there’s a permanent woke bureaucracy pushing ideology on faculty and students.
  • It lobbies for woke policies at the federal, state, and/or local levels. This means it’s wading into toxic public debates instead of fully focusing on educating future physicians.
  • It offers tenure and promotion to faculty who prove their commitment to extreme identity politics and woke priorities. This is a litmus test that requires faculty to toe the party line instead of teaching medicine at the highest level.
  • Its administrators areactive within local, regional, and national forumsto promote equity, diversity, and inclusion. This means it’s wasting resources that would be better spent on real medical education.

All told, The University of Minnesota Medical School has instituted 94.4% of the divisive and discriminatory woke policies listed by the AAMC. And you can bet it is feeling pressure from activists and outside groups to go even further down the radical rabbit hole – doing even more damage to faculty, medical students, and ultimately, the millions of patients they’ll see.

Figure 1. University of Minnesota Medical School DICE Inventory overall score.

Minnesota taxpayers help fund this school. They, and the policymakers who represent them, should ask why they’re giving so much money to an institution that’s putting divisive and discriminatory ideology at the heart of medical education. More importantly, they should ensure The University of Minnesota Medical School stops, and soon.