Texas Tech University System has rolled out new rules limiting how professors can discuss race, sex, and gender identity, all thanks to Senate Bill 37. The law requires any course material touching those topics to go through a formal review by department and university leadership—because nothing screams “higher education” like pre-approval paperwork.
The bill’s author is former state senator Brandon Creighton, who now happens to be the chancellor of the Texas Tech University System. Just a coincidence, of course. Current State Senator Charles Perry defended the move by saying professors shouldn’t impose personal beliefs, especially when they control grades that affect future careers. In other words, ideological influence is bad—unless it comes from the Legislature.
Not everyone is applauding. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) says the law likely oversteps First Amendment protections and threatens academic freedom. According to FIRE, public universities are legally required to protect faculty expression, including what happens in the classroom—even when it makes lawmakers uncomfortable.
Perry dismissed these topics as “distractions” from preparing students for employment, which is an interesting take given that modern workplaces famously never deal with issues of race, gender, or identity. Texas Tech, meanwhile, is left threading the needle between educating students and making sure no one says anything that might upset Austin.
If universities can’t talk about the real world without permission slips, are they still universities—or just very expensive job training centers with better football?