Dean Gives Strong Response To Trump Order
Southern Illinois University’s School of Medicine has stepped squarely into the cultural crossfire, with its top administrator, Dr. Jerry Kruse, delivering a pointed rebuke of recent federal directives from former President Donald Trump.
In a speech captured on video and published by Fox News, Kruse — dean, provost, and CEO of the medical school — condemned what he described as sweeping political intrusions into healthcare, education, and gender identity.
The spark: Executive Order 14168, issued by Trump in January, which emphasizes recognition of biological sex and criticizes what it calls “gender ideology extremism.” The order asserts that allowing self-identification into women’s spaces, including domestic violence shelters and workplace showers, amounts to a denial of biological reality and a threat to women’s safety and dignity.
Kruse, speaking before a university panel, called the order part of a broader “direct attack” on foundational principles. “These actions — and the general philosophy that they espouse — constitute direct attacks on all that is important to us: science, higher education, healthcare,” he said.
At the core of Kruse’s remarks was an argument against narrowing legal and medical definitions of sex. “This executive order seeks to narrowly define sex and gender in order to target transgender, nonbinary, and intersex people for mistreatment and discrimination,” he stated.
He further warned that Trump’s policy “opens [women] up to invasion of privacy” by enforcing rigid sex-based stereotypes.
Kruse’s framing reflects a shift in many academic medical institutions, where issues of identity, equity, and inclusion are increasingly linked with the mission of public health. In his public bio, Kruse is described as a student of the “interactions of biology and society,” with a focus on improving health systems through cultural and population-based insights.
In his address, Kruse expanded his criticism beyond gender policy. He accused the Trump administration of endangering the School of Medicine’s interests through its positions on immigration, global health, nutrition, and healthcare access. “These policies have a direct, negative effect,” he warned, praising SIU’s president for opposing them.
This intersection of medicine and ideology is now a hallmark of modern medical education. Where once disciplines such as gynecology were viewed strictly in biological terms, the evolving landscape now includes patients with a variety of gender identities — a reality reflected in SIU’s inclusive posture.