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Posted in Higher Education

University of Texas regents approve limits on teaching "unnecessary
controversial subjects"

Opponents warned the policy's vagueness could push professors to
self-censor and leave students less prepared for the workplace.
Avatar photo by Jessica Priest Feb. 19, 2026, 12:15 p.m. Central
Updated Feb. 19, 2026, 1:35 p.m. Central

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University of Texas regents approve limits on teaching "unnecessary
controversial subjects"

by Jessica Priest, The Texas Tribune
February 19, 2026

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The UT Tower from the Gates-Dell Complex in Austin on Sept. 19, 2025.
The UT Tower from the Gates-Dell Complex in Austin on Sept. 19, 2025.
Manoo Sirivelu/The Texas Tribune
Audio recording is automated for accessibility. Humans wrote and
edited the story. See our AI policy, and give us feedback.

The University of Texas System's Board of Regents unanimously
approved Thursday a rule requiring its universities to ensure
students can graduate without studying "unnecessary controversial
subjects," despite warnings it could leave them less prepared for the
real world.

The rule also requires faculty to disclose in their syllabi the
topics they plan to cover and adhere to the plan, and says that when
courses include controversial issues, instructors must ensure a
"broad and balanced approach" to the discussion.

The policy does not define what qualifies as "controversial" or what
constitutes a "broad and balanced approach." Opponents warned that
leaving those terms undefined would force administrators to interpret
them case by case, pressuring professors to avoid difficult material
rather than risk complaints.

"Will they (administrators) be experts in the relevant disciplines or
will they just seek to avoid unpleasant publicity?" Peter Onyisi, a
University of Texas at Austin physics professor, said during roughly
40 minutes of public testimony from 10 speakers, a mix of faculty,
students and alumni who all opposed the policy.

Board Chair Kevin Eltife said the lack of specificity came as the
system tried to craft a policy that could work in today's politically
charged environment.

"We are in difficult times," he said. "Vagueness can be our friend."

Other speakers said restricting controversial material would leave
students unprepared for careers that require navigating complex,
unsettled political and social problems.

"The job market is really tough right now, ask any undergrad," said
David Gray Widder, a professor in UT-Austin's School of Information.
"We can't do this to our students."

A civil rights attorney also warned the rule could invite legal
challenges. Allen Liu, policy counsel for the NAACP Legal Defense
Fund, said it could lead to "viewpoint discrimination" and
disproportionately affect Black students and faculty by discouraging
teaching about slavery, segregation and other subjects central to
Black history.

The UT System has had a rule for at least a decade stating faculty
are entitled to freedom in the classroom but "are expected not to
introduce into their teaching controversial matter that has no
relation to his or her subject."

The vote comes a week after UT-Austin announced it will consolidate
its African and African Diaspora Studies, Mexican American and Latino
Studies, American Studies, and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies
departments into a new Social and Cultural Analysis department. More
than 800 students are pursuing majors, minors and graduate degrees in
the affected programs. At the time, university President Jim Davis
said the reorganization followed a review that found "some
significant inconsistencies and fragmentation" across departments in
the College of Liberal Arts.

Over the past year, public universities have faced mounting pressure
from state and federal leaders to address a perceived liberal bias.
Under a new state law, Senate Bill 37, governor-appointed regents
have more oversight of classroom instruction, hiring and discipline.
That, coupled with conservative backlash last fall over a gender
identity lesson at Texas A&M University, has led the Texas A&M and
Texas Tech systems to adopt policies restricting how race, gender,
sexuality can be taught.

The policy UT passed Thursday does not explicitly ban those topics.

Last year, UT-Austin was also one of nine universities offered
preferential access to federal funding in exchange for agreeing to
ensure departments reflect a mix of perspectives and promote civic
values and Western civilization, among other requirements.

Some students argue that even without formally signing the agreement,
UT-Austin is already moving in that direction. Alfonso Ayala III, a
doctoral student in Mexican American and Latina/o Studies at
UT-Austin, pointed to the university expanding the
conservative-backed School of Civic Leadership as his department
loses autonomy.

"It's hard to understand this as anything other than ideological and
political," Ayala said.

The UT System, one of the nation's largest public university systems,
enrolls more than 260,000 students across nine campuses and four
medical centers statewide, all subject to the rule the regents
approved Thursday.

After the vote, Eltife said campus leaders would review curricula and
make a "principled determination" about when controversial material
is required for a degree and when it should be offered as an
elective. 

Eltife also directed Chancellor John Zerwas and Vice Chancellor for
Academic Affairs Archie Holmes to ensure institutions comply with
state and federal directives related to gender identity. 

Last year, President Donald Trump and Gov. Greg Abbott issued
executive orders directing federal and state agencies to recognize
only two sexes, male and female. There is no state or federal law
prohibiting teaching about gender identity.

The Texas Tribune partners with Open Campus on higher education
coverage.

Disclosure: Texas A&M University, University of Texas System and
University of Texas at Austin have been financial supporters of The
Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is
funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate
sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's
journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

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Avatar photo

Jessica PriestHigher Education Reporter

jessica.priest@texastribune.org

  *  

Jessica Priest covers higher education, working in partnership with
Open Campus. She joined the Tribune in 2022 as an engagement reporter
in the ProPublica/Texas Tribune joint investigative unit,
contributing... More by Jessica Priest

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