Pentagon disperses education wing's DEI unit across multiple departments to further push inclusion agenda

The Pentagon quietly announced that it plans to disband its education wing's diversity, equity, and inclusion unit to disperse DEI specialists throughout existing departments, Fox News Digital revealed Friday.

The Pentagon's education branch, the Department of Defense Education Activity, is a federally-operated school system responsible for educating service members' children. Currently, there are roughly 70,000 children enrolled in DOD schools.

The DODEA's DEI unit was formed after the Biden administration requested all federal agencies to "establish or elevate Chief Diversity Officers."

The agency hired Kelisa Wing as the education branch's DEI chief in 2021. She was responsible for curriculum, professional development, and hiring. In September 2022, Wing came under fire for being a "woke administrator" after posting comments disparaging white people on social media.

"I'm so exhausted at these white folx in these [professional development] sessions," Wing allegedly posted on social media. "This lady actually had the CAUdacity to say that black people can be racist too."

The term "CAUdacity" is a combination of "Caucasian" and "audacity."

Wing was placed under a six-month investigation for her comments. Gil Cisneros, the DOD's Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, was assigned to investigate Wing.

Last Thursday, Cisneros was asked to read Wing's post aloud. When asked by Florida Republican Representative Matt Gaetz to define "audacity," Cisneros replied, "I have no idea." Cisneros ultimately "determined the employee was speaking in a personal capacity," and no disciplinary action was taken against Wing.

In a letter to Congress, Cisneros claimed that Wing was no longer involved in "DEI-specific responsibilities" but did participate in a restructuring. However, sources told Fox News Digital that Wing is still internally listed as a DEI professional.

An email announcing the unit's disbandment explained that DEI specialists would be reassigned to several headquarter divisions, including "Research, Accountability, and Evaluation; Strategic and Organizational Excellent; Professional Learning; and Human Resources."

DODEA Director Tom Brady confirmed to Fox News Digital that the agency is planning a "reconfiguration of talent" that involves disbanding and dispersing the branch's DEI unit.

In a statement to Fox News Digital, a Pentagon spokesperson said, "The Department of Defense Education Activity's commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts for our employees and in support of high achievement for our 67,000 military-connected students remains unchanged."

"Department of Defense DEIA Strategic Plan, DoDEA reconfigured within the headquarters staff to integrate diversity, equity, and inclusion expertise into key areas to continue addressing barriers to inclusion, closing gaps in representation, and incorporate the institutional insights we have gained over the past two years," the spokesperson added.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!