COLUMBUS, Ohio — A bill introduced in the Ohio Senate would end all ties Ohio public universities and colleges have with in universities in China.
Under Senate Bill 83, which is being called the Ohio Higher Education Enhancement Act, students and staff would not be required to undergo diversity, equity or inclusion training at their schools.
The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Jerry Cirino, R-Kirtland, said these changes are meant to move higher education toward “true intellectual diversity” and away from a focus on “social change.”
When Cirino unveiled the bill at a news conference recently, he said the ban on partnerships with China was related to national security concerns.
But some Ohio residents, including Robert He, say the bill simply limits student learning.
“If the government tries to ban the relationship and ties between those two [U.S. and China] countries, that means that they’re just depriving the learning opportunity for those U.S. students,” said He, a Cleveland resident and Case Western Reserve University graduate who was born and raised in China.
SB 83 also would also require students to take courses on American history. In addition, the bill bans professors from striking and requires more syllabus transparency.
The legislation now heads for a hearing in a Senate committee.
