Author of anti-DEI law wants expansion to faculty hiring, course curriculum

Lawmakers in the next legislative session will debate whether the state's anti-Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion law should be expanded to eliminate faculty and courses teaching gender studies and other degrees that conservatives believe don't directly translate into jobs after college.

It will set up a showdown over what will be taught in Texas universities. Republican lawmakers may soon clash with academic and faculty groups who argue many courses don't directly lead to jobs but create well-rounded, educated, members of Texas society.

Senator Brandon Creighton, R - Conroe, told NBC 5 in an interview that he believes public universities have been successful complying with SB 17, which banned offices of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion along with some hiring statements.

Sen. Creighton's subcommittee on higher education in the Texas Senate has been exploring whether the law should be expanded to ban some degrees, curriculum, and faculty recruitment methods. In his view, many liberal arts degrees don't lead directly to employment after college. Lt. Governor Dan Patrick, leader of the Texas senate, directed Creighton's committee to look at the topic through a workforce development lens.

“What we need in our Texas universities are degrees of value. We need to ready our students for in-demand jobs and careers that are plentiful across this state," said Sen. Creighton.

Academics and school professors have already voiced concerns about limiting freedom of thought and research at public universities in Texas in early discussions. Sen. Creighton said he expects to have that debate in the coming months.

"Yes. We are going to make sure our universities are selling to our students an opportunity and a dream towards a future workforce and career that is actually realistic. Not a unicorn world of false pretenses that is more political indoctrination more than anything else," said Creighton.

Degrees such as gender studies and similar liberal arts degrees, Sen. Creighton says are "not of value or marketable."

The details will begin to be fleshed out when lawmakers return to Austin in mid-January. It may lead to a final state law banning aspects of higher education that lawmakers believe are a waste of taxpayer money.

Earlier this week, some faculty at the University of North Texas worried the College of Education was already taking steps in that direction by changing the names and descriptions of dozens of courses dealing with race and gender.

"I think it's shocking. It's something that all academics in the state of Texas need to be paying attention to, because this gets to a violation of academic freedom, which is our core identity," said philosophy and religion professor Adam Briggle.

Briggle learned about the dozens of name changes at a faculty meeting and news spread through the university with coverage from the student newspaper.

Earlier this week, Briggle told NBC 5 that the actions of self-censoring reminded him of his time guest teaching in communist China when there were cameras installed in the classrooms to watch the students and professors.

"It is just understood that there are certain things you will not say because the party is watching. This is kind of what I feel like we're drifting into.”

In an earlier statement to NBC 5, a spokeswoman for the UNT administration wrote the course changes were already in the works as part of a curriculum review for state-mandated teacher training, writing the changes was not part of Creighton's SB 17.

The administration, she wrote, fully stands by academic freedom.

“The university fully supports not just continuing but expanding this activity," she wrote, "Complying with SB17 does not change our values-based, people-focused culture or our commitment to research and academic freedom as defined by policy."

University classrooms will once again be the subject of debate in January when lawmakers return to Austin.