University of North Alabama shutters LGBT center
An LGBT center has been closed at the University of North Alabama following a state law that prohibits public universities from maintaining diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.
The University of North Alabama (UNA) has closed the Mitchell-West Center for Social Inclusion, a program established in 2019 to support LGBTQ and underrepresented students. The move comes in the wake of Alabama’s sweeping new Senate Bill 129, which prohibits public universities from maintaining diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) offices or sponsoring DEI-related programming.
Founded through a donation from Elliott Mitchell and Clark West, the center offered resources for LGBTQ students. By 2025, it became one of several DEI initiatives eliminated at Alabama schools following passage of SB129.
[RELATED: Federal judge won’t block DEI ban at Alabama public schools]
UNA confirmed the closure to AL.com but avoided directly linking it to the law, saying only that the university was “committed to complying fully with state and federal law.” The statement aligns with SB129’s requirements, which ban any publicly funded office or department that promotes DEI concepts or programming.
While SB129 provides exceptions for accreditation and academic freedom, it strictly forbids compelling assent to “divisive concepts” such as assigning guilt or privilege based on race, sex, or national origin. Violations can result in employee discipline or loss of funding.
Donors Mitchell and West said they were blindsided by the closure, claiming UNA gave them no warning despite their ongoing financial support. They also moved a $100,000 scholarship to a third-party foundation to prevent it from being blocked under SB129.
The closure follows similar actions at the University of Alabama and Auburn, where DEI offices were dismantled in the summer of 2024 in anticipation of SB129 taking effect.
Mitchell and West told reporters they were unlikely to make future investments in UNA, citing both the state’s anti-DEI legislation and what they described as political targeting of LGBT programs.
For UNA, the shuttering of the Mitchell-West Center underscores how Alabama’s new law is reshaping campus culture statewide. For donors, however, it may mark the end of their support.
