University of Texas at Austin cuts majors in Latino, Black, women and gender studies

The University of Texas at Austin is cutting four majors in ethnic and gender studies, though current students can finish their degrees. The cuts follow political pressure from Texas Republican leaders, which has led public universities statewide to purge hundreds of core courses. In response, the American Association of University Professors filed a federal lawsuit against Texas Tech. Concurrently, UT-Austin is expanding conservative-aligned programming, including a new Center for Humanities.

UT Austin major eliminations

• ▪The University of Texas at Austin is eliminating four academic majors: African and African diaspora studies, Mexican American and Latina/o studies, women's and gender studies, and race, indigeneity, and migration.
• ▪The University of Texas at Austin will allow students currently enrolled in the eliminated ethnic and gender studies majors to complete their degrees.
• ▪The University of Texas at Austin provost's office rejected a proposal from the Department of Social and Cultural Analysis to keep the ethnic and gender studies majors.
• ▪The University of Texas at Austin agreed to retain academic programming on American history and culture, as well as urban growth and development.
• ▪In February 2026, the University of Texas at Austin consolidated seven ethnic and gender studies departments into the Department of Social and Cultural Analysis while initially keeping the majors intact.

Texas political pressure on universities

• ▪Texas public universities face political pressure from Republican leaders to restrict how public K-12 schools and colleges teach race, gender, and sexuality.
• ▪The Trump administration asked the University of Texas at Austin to establish strict definitions for gender and eliminate academic departments deemed hostile to conservative ideas.
• ▪Texas Senate Bill 37, passed in 2025, allowed the University of Texas System to overhaul its academic cut process, giving campus presidents wide discretion to eliminate programs.

Statewide course removals

• ▪Texas A&M University eliminated its entire women's and gender studies degree program in early 2026.
• ▪Public universities in Texas have removed hundreds of core courses, including 350 at Texas A&M, 133 at the University of Houston, and 113 at the University of Texas at Austin.
• ▪Martin Peterson, former chair of the Academic Freedom Council at Texas A&M, left his position for Southern Methodist University due to political restrictions on teaching.
• ▪Texas State University removed its LGBTQ+ Communication Studies course, and the Texas Tech University System announced plans in December 2025 to close programs centered on sexual orientation and gender.

Faculty lawsuit against restrictions

• ▪The American Association of University Professors filed a federal lawsuit against the Texas Tech University System, alleging violations of the First and 14th amendments over program closures.
• ▪Teresa Klein, president of the Texas AAUP-AFT Conference, stated that curriculum rollbacks surrounding diversity, equity, and inclusion could be reversed if Texas political leadership changes.

UT conservative curriculum expansion

• ▪The University of Texas at Austin hired 14 new professors for its Center for Humanities, many of whom previously taught at the University of Florida.
• ▪In the summer of 2026, the University of Texas at Austin opened a Center for Humanities focused on teaching and research tied to the core curriculum.
• ▪Julie Minich, an officer of the UT American Association of University Professors chapter, criticized the new core curriculum as designed to transmit content rather than promote critical thinking.
• ▪University of Texas at Austin president Jim Davis unveiled a proposed undergraduate core curriculum in August 2026 designed to prepare graduates for careers and civic life.

Debatable claims

• ▪UT Austin's new core curriculum fails to foster critical thinking
• ▪UT Austin should reinstate its ethnic and gender studies majors