The University of Texas System’s Board of Regents voted unanimously Thursday to adopt a rule requiring its universities to ensure students can graduate without encountering what the board described as “unnecessary controversial subjects.” The decision comes amid national debates over curriculum content and academic freedom in public higher education.
Under the new rule, faculty must provide syllabi that clearly outline the topics they plan to cover and adhere to the published plan. When courses include controversial issues, instructors are required to provide a “broad and balanced approach” to the material. However, the policy does not define what qualifies as controversial or what constitutes a broad and balanced approach, prompting concerns from faculty, students, and legal experts.
“Will they [administrators] be experts in the relevant disciplines or will they just seek to avoid unpleasant publicity?” asked Peter Onyisi, a physics professor at the University of Texas at Austin, during roughly 40 minutes of public testimony from 10 speakers opposing the policy.
Board Chair Kevin Eltife acknowledged the lack of specificity, noting the challenges of crafting a policy in what he described as a politically charged environment. “We are in difficult times,” he said. “Vagueness can be our friend.”
Some speakers warned that limiting controversial material could leave students less prepared for careers that require navigating complex social and political issues. “The job market is really tough right now, ask any undergrad,” said David Gray Widder, a professor in UT-Austin’s School of Information. “We can’t do this to our students.”
Civil rights advocates also raised concerns about potential legal implications. Allen Liu, policy counsel for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, suggested the rule could amount to “viewpoint discrimination” and disproportionately impact Black students and faculty by discouraging instruction on topics such as slavery, segregation, and other aspects of Black history.
The UT System has previously maintained a policy giving faculty freedom in the classroom while advising them to avoid introducing controversial material unrelated to their subject. The newly approved rule builds on this framework but adds explicit requirements for transparency and course planning.
The vote follows a recent announcement by UT-Austin that it will consolidate the African and African Diaspora Studies, Mexican American and Latino Studies, American Studies, and Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies departments into a new Social and Cultural Analysis department. More than 800 students are enrolled in programs affected by the change. University President Jim Davis described the reorganization as a response to “some significant inconsistencies and fragmentation” within the College of Liberal Arts.
Public universities nationwide have faced growing scrutiny over perceived liberal bias in curriculum. In Texas, Senate Bill 37 gives governor-appointed regents increased oversight over classroom instruction, hiring, and disciplinary actions. Conservative backlash last year over a gender identity lesson at Texas A&M University prompted both the Texas A&M and Texas Tech systems to adopt policies limiting how topics such as race, gender, and sexuality can be taught. The UT System’s new policy does not explicitly ban instruction on these subjects.
Last year, UT-Austin was among nine universities offered preferential access to federal funding in exchange for agreeing to promote civic values, Western civilization, and diverse perspectives in their departments. Some students interpret current institutional changes as aligning with these principles. Alfonso Ayala III, a doctoral student in Mexican American and Latina/o Studies at UT-Austin, cited the expansion of the School of Civic Leadership as an example of decreasing autonomy for certain departments. “It’s hard to understand this as anything other than ideological and political,” he said.
The UT System, one of the nation’s largest public university systems, enrolls more than 260,000 students across nine campuses and four medical centers. Following Thursday’s vote, Eltife said campus leaders would review curricula to determine when controversial material is required for a degree versus when it should be offered as an elective. He also instructed Chancellor John Zerwas and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Archie Holmes to ensure compliance with state and federal directives related to gender identity.
Although federal and state authorities have issued executive orders on recognizing only two sexes, there is currently no law prohibiting the teaching of gender identity.
