UT Austin drops African, Latino and gender studies majors under new state law

New enrollees at the University of Texas at Austin will no longer be able to major in African and African diaspora studies, Mexican American and Latino studies, or women and gender studies after the provost’s office dismissed the departments’ proposals. Interim chair Danielle Clealand informed faculty that the university must develop a new major by the end of the semester, while students already committed to the discontinued majors can still complete their programs.

The university retained courses in American history, culture, urban growth and development, but the website still lists the eliminated degrees. The decision was made under a new state law granting campus presidents wide discretion to cut programs for reasons such as cost or alignment with the university’s mission, with no appeal process for faculty. The move mirrors actions at Texas Tech and Texas A&M, which have faced political pressure to limit race, gender and sexuality curricula. Faculty leaders, including Karma Chávez and Lauren Gutterman, warned that the cuts send a hostile signal to students studying race and gender topics.