Texas A&M University faculty were informed this week that around 200 courses in the College of Arts and Sciences might be influenced by a new system policy limiting discussions on race and gender. This policy has already led to administrators instructing a philosophy professor to exclude Plato readings from a core course. The changes are occurring just before the semester start, impacting students already registered.
The Texas Tribune accessed emails indicating the policy has caused course cancellations or renumbering to exclude them from core curriculum credit. Professors are being advised to modify course content or select alternative classes. In November, the A&M System Board of Regents approved a policy requiring campus presidents to approve courses that might be perceived as endorsing “race and gender ideology” or related topics. This follows a student’s secret recording of a gender identity discussion in a class, which sparked conservative criticism.
In December, the regents revised the policy, limiting most discussions of these topics in introductory or core courses unless deemed educationally essential. This triggered a rapid course review before the spring semester’s Jan. 12 start. Emails show an introductory sociology course on race and ethnicity was canceled, a communications course on religion and arts renumbered, and a philosophy professor directed to remove Plato readings and race and gender materials from a core course.
Students enrolled in SOCI 217, Introduction to Race and Ethnicity, were informed that the course could not comply with the revised policy. Those needing the course for degree or career reasons may pursue it via independent study. The course had faced previous scrutiny, with Texas Scorecard, a conservative outlet, reporting on it and its assigned readings.
Professor Martin Peterson, upon submitting his syllabus for PHIL 111, Contemporary Moral Issues, was given a choice to remove race and gender ideology modules, including Plato readings, or teach a noncore course. Peterson opted to revise the syllabus, substituting Plato with lectures on free speech and academic freedom. A&M stated the decision wasn’t a ban on Plato and that other sections with Plato but without race and gender topics had approval.
The course alterations stem from a broader review process discussed by Interim Dean Simon North in a faculty meeting. Approximately 200 courses were identified as potentially affected, with departments working under varying deadlines to submit syllabi. Faculty were informed that some departments were renumbering courses to exclude them from the core curriculum. Exemption requests for courses integral to race and gender discussions are possible, with about 30 exemptions anticipated.
Faculty expressed concern about the impact on students and the decision-making process. Professor Sally Robinson noted the uncertainty about who would make these decisions. Peterson expressed that the directive compromises university openness and debate. The Texas A&M Chapter of the American Association of University Professors, along with the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, criticized the move, with Lindsie Rank stating, “The board didn’t just invite censorship, they unleashed it.”
The College of Arts and Sciences is among 17 colleges at Texas A&M University, College Station, with 11 other universities subject to the same policy. Other public university systems, including the Texas Tech University System, have implemented similar measures.
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