AUSTIN—Regents of the Texas State University System voted to wind down tenure at two-year system institutions at this week’s quarterly meeting. The change will impact Lamar Institute of Technology, Lamar State College Orange, and Lamar State College Port Arthur.
The policy “establishes a system-wide framework to discontinue the conferral of tenure for future faculty appointments at Lamar Institute of Technology (LIT), Lamar State College Orange (LSCO) and Lamar State College Port Arthur (LSCPA).”
Two-year institutions are generally considered to specialize in “workforce development” fields, whereas four-year institutions generally pursue “academic” fields.
“Similar to Texas community colleges, the Lamar State Colleges offer [a] wide variety of workforce development programs,” a Texas State System representative told Texas Scorecard.
“As these programs can evolve quickly based on local and regional workforce needs, the new policy ensures that faculty recruitment and retention practices are able to accommodate these changes.”
The change came through the rules and regulations committee and was passed, without discussion, as part of the consent agenda.
The Texas State regents’ action stands in contrast to recent actions by both the Texas A&M and University of North Texas boards. Regents of the latter two institutions rubber stamped tenure for dozens of woke faculty members at their respective meetings last week.
Also on Thursday, the regents’ Academic and Health Affairs Committee heard a presentation on systemwide research issues. Regents were told that the system is “well on our way” to full compliance with House Bill 127, a 2025 state law that established a statutory framework for research security at Texas’ taxpayer-subsidized universities.
Further action on HB 127 compliance is expected during the board’s August meeting.
Regent Charlie Amato raised questions, during the Planning and Construction committee meeting, about enrollment patterns in the face of long-term population decline. The rhetorical question came in response to a discussion of the campus master plan at Sul Ross State University’s Eagle Pass Campus but was intended to reflect the broader landscape of higher education.
This week’s meeting also marked Amato’s ascendancy to the position of longest-serving regent in Texas State System history. First appointed in 2007, Amato has now served nineteen years and is currently scheduled to serve through at least 2031.
Finally, regents voted to make Tom Long the board’s interim vice chair. Long will fill the position until regularly scheduled board elections in November.
The Texas State University System includes seven academic institutions. It is overseen by a Board of Regents that is appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Texas Senate. Stephen Lee of Bastrop is the current board chair.
