Texas’ Higher Education Coordinating Board plans to expand a controversial social work program at UT-Arlington that was recently the subject of an undercover investigation.
According to the agenda for April’s quarterly meeting, the coordinating board is scheduled to consider and potentially approve a Doctorate of Social Work at UT-Arlington’s School of Social Work.
Traditionally, board approval is considered a “rubber stamp” process once coordinating board staff issues an affirmative recommendation.
UT-Arlington’s social work program became the subject of national controversy last week, when activist group Accuracy in Media released an undercover video in which a now-former staff member discussed how the institution has maintained diversity, equity, and inclusion materials in course content.
The now-former staff member, Melissa Cruz, explains that while the university has had to remove certain terminology and abide by new bans, the core intent, research, and curriculum of their social work program remains unchanged.
According to Cruz, faculty members are well-versed in how to navigate these legislative changes. Instead of using “banned” terminology that could trigger administrative scrutiny, they have rebranded specific concepts; for instance, continuing education units that were previously labeled “cultural competency” are now classified as “human service” hours.
Cruz also noted that the program continues to adhere to national accreditation standards set by bodies such as the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), which may conflict with state-level mandates.
UT-Arlington terminated Cruz’s employment following the release of the video.
Accreditation under the CSWE was the subject of another video released by the same group two weeks ago that showed continued DEI at the University of North Texas. The Steve Hicks School of Social Work at UT-Austin also requires so-called “anti-racism” training for accreditation by the CSWE.
Social work education has a notorious history as a repository for woke content, both nationally and in the Lone Star State.
In 2025, Baylor University’s Garland School of Social Work returned a grant promoting LGBT ideology within churches following public backlash.
UNT social work professors have spoken at trans-affirming conferences and require adherence to woke ideology.
Texas’ Higher Education Coordinating Board performs a variety of oversight functions related to taxpayer-subsidized higher education institutions, including final approval of new degree programs. Stacy Hock of Austin is the current board chair.
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