EDITORS' CORNER
Key Takeaways
- The University of Texas System has implemented a policy that requires instructors to avoid undisclosed controversial subjects in their course materials and ensure a balanced approach when discussing contentious topics.
- The policy does not define what constitutes 'controversial,' allowing for flexibility but raising concerns about vagueness and potential self-censorship among faculty.
- Critics, including professors and civil rights advocates, argue that the policy could limit academic freedom and discourage discussions on essential historical issues.
The University of Texas System passed a new policy Thursday requiring instructors to avoid covering controversial subjects in the classroom.
“In designing course syllabi, readings, and assignments, instructors must carefully consider the topics to be covered to meet the standards of the course, exclude unrelated controversial or contested matters, clearly disclose in the syllabus the topics to be covered, adhere faithfully to the contents of the syllabus in teaching the course, and avoid introducing undisclosed material that is not clearly relevant and grounded in the topic of that course,” the policy reads.
“When a course includes controversial and contested issues, instructors shall ensure a broad and balanced approach to the discussion and teaching of these issues,” it reads.
The policy does not specify what qualifies as “controversial.” Board Chair Kevin Eltife said the regents intentionally left the terms undefined in order to craft a flexible policy, according to The Texas Tribune.
“We are in difficult times,” he said. “Vagueness can be our friend.”
After a public comment period in which all ten speakers criticized the policy, the nine-member Board of Regents unanimously approved it without any discussion, according to Inside Higher Ed.
“Will they (administrators) be experts in the relevant disciplines or will they just seek to avoid unpleasant publicity?” University of Texas at Austin professor Peter Onyisi said during his testimony.
Following the vote, some criticized the policy for being overly vague or promoting self-censorship.
“When [the terms] aren’t defined, there are two things that are going to happen. First, faculty are going to self-censor and take out many things from their classroom teaching,” University of Texas at Dallas professor Ravi Prakash told Inside Higher Ed.
He added that “when students ask questions, faculty might say, ‘I don’t want to go there because it could get me into trouble.’”
Allen Liu, policy counsel for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, warned that the policy could result in “viewpoint discrimination” and discourage discussions on topics such as slavery and segregation, according to The Texas Tribune.
Further, in a post on Facebook, the American Association of University Professors shared an op-ed by UT postdoctoral fellow María Unda, who criticized the policy for restricting speech.
“What is being labeled ‘controversial’ today is the very knowledge Texas will need to survive tomorrow,” Unda wrote.
“Whether universities choose to honor that responsibility—or abandon it—communities will continue doing what they have always done: creating spaces where truth is not feared, but cultivated,” she wrote.
The policy isn’t the only recent free speech concern in Texas.
Earlier this year, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board Office of the Ombudsman announced a new website where individuals can file complaints alleging violations of state laws banning “diversity, equity, and inclusion” programs at public colleges and universities, The College Fix reported.
Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression spokesman Tyler Coward told The Fix, “Anytime there’s … a reporting feature like this, it runs the risk of chilling speech, particularly academic instruction.”
“Universities are exactly the places where controversial ideas should be discussed and debated and contested,” Coward said.
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