A slew of additional allegations are coming to light in Professor Richard Lowery’s free speech lawsuit against UT-Austin.
As Texas Scorecard reported last fall, Lowery, a tenured professor at McCombs School of Business, filed a lawsuit alleging that three administrators had stifled his first amendment rights by retaliating against him for public comments critical of university policies. Lowery works in the Salem Center for Policy at McCombs.
Lowery has been critical of the cost of the university’s ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ bureaucracy. A conservative estimate suggests the cost of the DEI bureaucracy is at least $13 million. While the Texas legislature abolished university DEI offices in 2023, some have questioned the degree to which the university has complied.
In addition, Lowery’s lawsuit revives accusations of nepotism against UT President Jay Hartzell.
Lowery’s Washington Times op-ed from June 2022 hints at nepotism in college admissions, and he told the court that he had president “Hartzell in mind as an example” of an administrator when writing that article.
Lowery knew from Carvalho that, in 2020, Hartzell emailed an…
— Abigail Anthony (@abigailandwords) April 2, 2024
Charges of interference by the university president in admissions decisions have an ignominious history at UT-Austin. In 2013, it came to light that disgraced former university president William Powers was running a secret admissions program for prominent legislators (eg. then-House Speaker Joe Straus) and power brokers across the state of Texas. This program was brought to light by former Regent Wallace Hall. When Hall uncovered this secret program, the Texas House of Representatives attempted to impeach him. Hall was subsequently vindicated.
Lowery’s lawsuit remains ongoing.
The University of Texas is governed by a board of regents that is appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Texas Senate. Concerned Texans may contact the board of regents at (512) 499-4402 or via email at bor@utsystem.edu.
Texas Scorecard contacted the UT System Board of Regents for comment but did not receive a response before publication.
