The University of Texas at Austin has unveiled a major overhaul in faculty governance, formally announcing the creation of two new advisory bodies in response to sweeping changes mandated by a recent state law.
In an open letter posted to the university website, President Jim Davis explained the creation of two new entities.
A President’s Faculty Advisory Board, made up of 12 faculty members, will assist with matters concerning the entire university. A Faculty Advisory Cohort, with 60 faculty members, will advise university leadership on more specialized matters.
Davis also announced that Provost William Inboden would “provide full details on the nomination process and implementation timeline to Deans” of individual schools within the university.
Davis’ announcement follows the abolition of UT-Austin’s previous faculty advisory council under Senate Bill 37, a measure that passed during the 2025 regular legislative session. That law abolished shared governance at taxpayer-subsidized universities.
In higher education, shared governance is the practice in which boards of regents delegate authority to university presidents, who in turn share power with the faculty. Unlike the previous faculty advisory council, which had jurisdiction over university policies, the new bodies are advisory only.
Under the new system, final authority for all university policies resides with the university president. UT-Austin’s new assemblage will, for now, fall under an interim policy the UT System regents established at their August meeting. Regents have not announced a timeline for a permanent policy.
UT-Austin is a component institution of the University of Texas System. The University of Texas System is overseen by a Board of Regents that is appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Texas Senate.
UT-Austin did not respond to Texas Scorecard’s request for comment before publication.
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