Photo by Zabdiel Gonzalez on Unsplash
On January 30, Texas A&M University announced it will eliminate its women’s and gender studies degree program. This phaseout is set to occur over several semesters, allowing current students to complete their coursework. University leaders pointed to low enrollment and high cost as the key factors in this decision. Just 25 students are pursuing these as majors, and 31 pursuing as minors. The reality, though, is A&M’s decisions followed a campus-wide course review that was sparked by a viral classroom confrontation over gender identity. That confrontation attracted national attention, and quite a bit of political scrutiny.
This move represents a broader push to see public universities prioritize workforce related academic disciplines, and, frankly, to meet the measurable student demand. There has been growing scrutiny in Texas about course content related to race, gender, and identity. Further new policies will be limiting advocacy of such topics in the classroom without administrative approval.
Conservatives have long argued that these gender studies programs have are simply tools to promote ideological frameworks instead of objective scholarship. Women’s studies and gender studies degrees are almost exclusively rooted in Marxist critical theory. Students are taught to view society through the various competing identity groups rather than individual merit or true academic inquiry.
This program’s closure is a victory for both Texas students and for taxpayers. Big cuts like this are necessary if we are to refocuse public universities on their original academic missions and make them accountable to the public who funds them. The left will certainly cry censorship and the limiting of “academic freedom” at each of these bold moves. However, public institutions should reflect public priorities. They should make sure that educational offerings align with student demand. And strict fiscal responsibility and true academic standards should be enforced.
This move by Texas A&M is just one piece of the heated national debate about the infiltration of leftist ideology into American higher education. Texas is positioning themselves now as a leading example of the effort to reshape university systems around proper curriculum priorities and accountability for public funding.
Do you have a college-bound son or daughter? Do you care about the next generation? At PhyllisSchlafly.com, we expose the liberal agenda and anti-Christian mind-set found on most college campuses and help equip conservative students to stand up for their beliefs. Visit us at PhyllisSchlafly.com and join us again next time for the Phyllis Schlafly Report.
