The Texas Republican Party’s ideological transformation of UT-Austin is barreling forward, with new developments coming on a weekly and sometimes daily basis.
Last Wednesday, Board of Regents Chairman Kevin Eltife announced that UT was “honored” to be one of nine universities singled out by the Trump administration for a so-called “compact” promising the schools federal research money in exchange for supporting the Republicans’ political agenda.
To get the funds, UT would have to agree, among other things, that there are only two genders. It would have to abolish “institutional units” – presumably university programs and departments – that “belittle” conservative ideas. It would have to force instructors and other employees not to speak on political or social matters unless they directly impact the university. It would have to work to prevent protests and heckling on campus. It would have to restrict the number of international students it admits. It would have to publish anonymized data from those seeking admission, including their GPAs and test scores, broken down by race, national origin, and gender. It would have to freeze tuition for five years.
And if the government decides that UT hasn’t fulfilled the terms of the agreement, it can make the university give back any money it has received – and any money it has received from private donors, at the donors’ request.
Critics are warning administrators not to sign what the American Association of University Professors is calling a “loyalty oath.” They say it would discourage long-term research projects at UT by making them subject to political whims, wreck multi-institutional projects, isolate UT from other universities, and erode its reputation. Nonetheless, several professors we spoke with off the record expect UT’s leaders to accept the deal.
In a statement to reporters, Eltife said UT is “enthusiastically” reviewing it. “Higher education has been at a crossroads in recent years, and we have worked very closely with Governor Abbott, Lt. Gov. Patrick and Speaker Burrows to implement sweeping changes for the benefit of our students and to strengthen our institutions to best serve the people of Texas,” Eltife said. “Today we welcome the new opportunity presented to us and we look forward to working with the Trump Administration on it.”
Andrea Gore, a respected UT researcher speaking in a personal capacity, said she was embarrassed by Eltife’s response. “It is telling that he mentioned the Texas governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker of the house as the people he’s been working with to improve higher education – not university leaders and faculty,” Gore said. “If he signs the compact he will be signing away academic freedom and undermining our great Texas public universities once and for all.”
Professor Pauline Strong, speaking as the president of the UT chapter of the AAUP, said the compact trades the best interests of students for the favor of an administration bent on destroying the university. “The requirements laid out in this letter will be the beginning rather than the end of the Trump administration’s demands of our institution,” she said.
Two days before news of the compact broke, the UT system announced it was reviewing all courses which include content on gender identity to “make sure any courses that are taught on UT campuses are aligned with the direction and priorities of the Board of Regents” – in other words, with the anti-LGBTQ+ values of the Texas Republican Party.
Lauren Gutterman, an associate professor of American Studies and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, said as far as she knows no faculty have received clarification on the review from UT’s president, provost, or college deans. “I don’t know if the review will target only LGBTQ+ studies courses or if it will include any course that discusses gender at all,” Gutterman said. “So many courses across the university address gender in some way – from the medical school and the law school, to the school of education and the social work school – that I don’t see how such a review would be possible.”
Three weeks earlier, in mid-September, faculty and students learned that Charles Martinez, the highly respected dean of the College of Education, was being pushed out by UT leaders. During his six years as dean, the College of Education, which trains teachers and social workers, had increased enrollment by 40% and become one of the top colleges of its kind in the nation. In confirming his resignation as dean, Martinez said he had wanted to continue in the position but that “with new leadership in place at UT, our president and provost are working to build the team they need to advance their vision and priorities.”
Professor Angela Valenzuela, who has taught at UT for 26 years, asked in a blog post, “Why would our university leadership choose not to endorse the continued service of one of the most effective and visionary deans our College of Education has ever had?” The answer was suggested by a report on Martinez’s resignation from the right-wing newsroom Texas Scorecard (spun off from billionaire Trump donor Tim Dunn’s Empower Texans), which claimed that under Martinez the College of Education had promoted “woke endeavors” and “far-left content,” including courses on “equitable, justice-oriented learning communit[ies]” and “racial, ethnic, gender, and sexual orientation diversity in education.”
This article appears in October 10 • 2025.
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