DEI Department To Be Dissolved Following Chattanooga City Council Vote

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The Tennessee Conservative [By Paula Gomes] –

A Chattanooga diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) department will be closed down following a city council vote on Tuesday.

In order to stay in compliance with a new state law, funding for the Department of Equity and Community Engagement was voted to be dissolved. The Tennessee General Assembly passed the Dismantle DEI Departments Act earlier this year which requires DEI department to be eliminated from public institutions.

The new law prohibits a department, agency, or other unit of state government or political subdivision of the state from maintaining or authorizing an office or department that promotes or requires discriminatory preferences to increase diversity, equity, or inclusion.

Cities across Tennessee, including school districts, and public institutes of higher education have been making changes since the law passed in order to come into compliance. In some cases this meant restructuring departments, while others took down DEI references from their websites, suddenly shuttered offices, or deliberately manipulated language and programs to circumvent anti-DEI mandates.

In Chattanooga, a department focused on the Latin community – the Office of New Americans – will be getting a rebrand, its new name will be the Office of New Chattanoogans. Rather than just focusing on immigrants and refugees, the department’s mission will be to assist all new residents of the city. Former Executive Coordinator for the Mayor’s Office, Miles Huff, will lead the department while former Office of New Americans Director Kelly Valcarce will become the Director of Community Engagement.

Created two years ago, the Office of New Americans worked to connect refugees and immigrants to city resources and other opportunities.

The now dissolved Department of Equity and Community Engagement, which included the Office of New Americans hosted a series of bimonthly workshops beginning in November of 2023 called Bridging Communities while also engaging partner organizations which included the Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition, Bridge Refugee Services, the office of Republican Congressman Chuck Fleischmann, and Volunteers in Medicine, among others.

Touted as a partnership of nearly 50 service providers and nonprofits aimed at exploring the best practices in serving immigrant and refugee communities, the program included translation services, as well as English as a Second Language classes, and trained organizational partners in interacting with immigrants and refugees.

The $2 million budgeted for Equity and Community Engagement was redirected to the Department of Community Development and the Office of Constituent Services. Eleven of the twelve positions at the now closed department have been transferred to these two departments with new job descriptions that remove duties that formerly focused on DEI. The one position to be cut was the Chief Equity Officer who retired in June. That salary of $150,000 will be funneled into Community Development.

In addition, Neighborhood Services will be overseen by the Office of Constituent Services, while Community Engagement Programs and Activities will be moved to the Department of Community Development.

Chattanooga’s Equity Board will be revamped into the Community Engagement Board, while Community Development will take in both Community Health, and Community Safety and Gun Violence Prevention Division.

The city council voted 8 to 1 to make the changes. Councilmember Chip Henderson, representing Lookout Valley, voted no because he thought the city should be cutting spending in light of the elimination of an executive position. Some voting yes only did so in order to make sure that the city would be in compliance with the law.

The Chattanooga City Council will meet again and vote a second time on the changes next week before they can go into effect.

Compliance remains varied in other major cities across the state.

In Nashville, an Office for New Americans still exists to “empower immigrants” while repurposing its Office for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion into the Office of Impact.

Meanwhile, Knoxville has not announced any changes. It did, however, lose a federal grant worth multiple millions of dollars earlier this year that was meant for a pedestrian bridge due to DEI-related language in the application.

While Memphis had no DEI office when the law went into effect earlier this year, it closed down a Minority Women Business Enterprise Program focused on minority- and women-owned businesses. A Multicultural Advisory Board is still listed on the city’s website.

Other Sources:

https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2025/sep/16/chattanooga-city-council-votes-yes-on-kelly-plan/

https://www.chattanoogan.com/2025/9/16/508634/City-Staff-Re-Organization-Comes-In.aspx

About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.