Earlier this year, the Woods Hole Diversity Initiative announced it was pausing the group’s activities following the Trump administration’s rollbacks to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs. Now, the diversity initiative’s website is gone from public view.
The website, woodsholediversity.org, had been hosted by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI)—one of six local scientific institutions that participated in the coalition’s work to further DEI in the Woods Hole science community.
The website contained information about the history of the group, as well as educational programs, resources and research related to DEI.
Woods Hole Diversity Advisory Committee member and director of the now-discontinued Partnership Education Program Onjalé Scott Price said she received an email a few weeks ago, saying that the website would be taken down on May 9. The email said the website was “considered by WHOI to be inactive.”
In a statement to CAI, WHOI said it followed its standard practice for “sunsetting outdated or inactive websites.”
“The site had not been actively maintained following the winding down of the committee’s activities, which reflected shifts in the federal landscape and changes in participation among the organizations involved,” the statement continued. “As part of that transition, the website was taken offline.”
In an email obtained by the Enterprise, the Woods Hole Diversity Initiative said it was taking a hiatus because several of the member organizations “have had to step back.”
“The collaboration across these institutions has had a profound impact over the years,” the email continued. “We hope to resume this important work soon.”
The contents of the website were archived and can still be seen by member institutions, according to WHOI.
