A trade association for left-wing faculty will investigate the state of Texas over alleged violations of “academic freedom.”
As first reported by Inside Higher Education, a committee of the American Association of University Professors has launched a probe into the governance of taxpayer-subsidized universities across the Lone Star State.
The investigation “will examine the implementation of Senate Bill 37 and related state actions, growing political control over curriculum and teaching, restrictions on faculty governance, the closure of academic programs, increasing governing board intervention into academic affairs, limitations on protest and campus speech, and other state and institutional policies that affect the freedom to teach, learn, research and govern our higher education institutions democratically,” AAUP told Inside Higher Education.
In 2025, Texas lawmakers overhauled several aspects of university governance under Senate Bill 37.
Most importantly, SB 37 abolished the practice of “shared governance.” Under that system, university presidents delegated formal decision-making authority to faculty representatives elected by their colleagues.
Under the new law, faculty bodies may only serve in an advisory capacity. Campus presidents, who report to boards of regents, maintain all formal decision-making authority.
Boards of regents are accountable to Texans through the governor, who appoints them, and the Texas Senate, which confirms these appointments.
The new law also requires boards of regents to conduct a review of all general education curricula every five years to ensure it is “foundational and fundamental to a sound postsecondary education, are necessary to prepare students for civic and professional life; equip students for participation in the workforce and in the betterment of society; and ensure a breadth of knowledge in compliance with applicable accreditation standards.”
Additionally, the new law gives boards of regents final say over hiring for senior leadership positions.
Depending on the results of the investigation, AAUP could issue a formal “resolution of censure.”
Such a resolution would be toothless and have zero impact on the day-to-day operations of any university.
AAUP’s “investigation” is an attempt to revive a playbook the group used against UT-Austin in the 1940s.
During the 1940s, the group vocally opposed efforts by the University of Texas Board of Regents to remove university President Homer Rainey. Regents had sought to terminate Rainey’s employment due to several acts of insubordination.
When regents refused to reinstate Rainey, AAUP passed a similarly toothless censure of the University of Texas that it did not repeal until 1953.
