SAN MARCOS, Texas – While state-mandated changes in diversity offices and hiring at the University of Texas at Austin (UT) have drawn recent headlines and criticism, similar changes at Texas State have played out quieter.
Senate Bill 17 implemented numerous changes to Texas State since going into effect on Jan. 1 through dismantling the Inclusive Excellence office and removing diversity statements and other diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) methods in hiring.
Despite S.B. 17 not explicitly affecting course instruction, students and faculty have seen its effects throughout the semester through unspoken tension and uncertainty as the first semester with the bill in effect comes to a close.
Dr. Isaac Torres, lecturer for the Center of Diversity and Gender Studies at Texas State, said he has not seen S.B. 17 directly affect professors and faculty.
However, he has seen the bill show up in more of a social and cultural way where his colleagues are more aware of the bill and how it may impact higher education.
“A lot of people find themselves being a bit more careful and cautious about what their politics are or how that shows up and how that represents in kind of a public space,” Torres said. “It precedes Senate Bill 17 – this has been a cultural kind of thing for a while, so it feels like we’re divided in many ways.”
Multiple university officials declined to comment on requests for interviews related to S.B. 17.
Additionally, multiple emails asking for a comment on S.B. 17 were returned with Sandra Pantlik, vice president for marketing and communications at Texas State, copied on the response.
Matthew Sepko, history graduate student, said his history classes at Texas State haven’t been impacted beyond there being more tension when the topic of DEI is brought up.
“[Someone] will bring up what’s happening at UT, [and] then there’ll be a bit of like a more somber discussion for a few minutes, and I think a bit of fear like how this could affect us,” Sepko said. “It all seems a bit more distant. [UT] is only 40 minutes away, but it feels like Texas State doesn’t have the prestige of UT. They’re very much being used in this bigger narrative or just these bigger issues.”
Sepko also said there is a bit of fear about the topic of anti-DEI efforts, but it has not escalated to a crisis yet compared to University of Texas at Austin.
“I think it’s a very highly politicized issue,” Sepko said. “There’s still some fear and some tenseness about how the future could make this worse. I think there is some sort of like general stress over (how) this could potentially affect us, especially since we see it happening in Austin right now.”
Torres said when approaching his classes, he also works to be more specific about the purpose of the assignments and readings with his students when covering topics related to DEI.
“I don’t shy away from that stuff personally, but I guess the policy might have informed me to be a bit more clear with my instruction and clear with like (specifying) what the objective of reading these articles (is) or why we are dealing with intersectionality or race,” Torres said. “I try to be very upfront and transparent (and explain) we’re going to take a critical look at this, and so it’s going to require you to kind of maybe challenge some assumptions or biases that we all have.”
Kate Miller, senior applied sociology major, said her classes still utilize a multicultural and intersectional lens, and class discussion has not changed beyond people being more aware of the disbanding of the DEI programs and the current political conversation.
“I do think (what happened at UT) was a real slap and meant to tell the other universities to get in line,” Miller said. “I moved (to San Marcos) from Austin last year, and I think that our governor and his cronies at the state don’t like the way our mayor runs Austin. There’s a lot of focus on UT.”
Miller said she expected UT would handle adjusting to S.B. 17 in the same way as the other universities in Texas by disseminating faculty into other student services rather than firing them.
“I think it’s worrisome the way that our legislature is treating higher education overall,” Miller said. “I love being a Texan, but I hate where we are as a state right now.”
