AAUP Chapters Across TSUS Oppose Regent Attacks on Tenure

Press Release Archive

AAUP Chapters Across Texas State University System Condemn Proposed Rollback of Tenure and Faculty Due Process

San Marcos, Texas, May 26, 2026 — Chapters of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) across the Texas State University System (TSUS) are unified in their opposition to proposed policy changes by the TSUS Board of Regents that undermine academic freedom, weaken due process protections, and dismantle tenure-track pathways at several system institutions.

In a coordinated statement released before the May meeting of the TSUS Board of Regents, leaders from four AAUP chapters called on regents to “honor their duty to the public good” and halt what they describe as escalating attacks on higher education governance and faculty protections across the seven-campus system.

The proposed rules would eliminate all future tenure-track appointments at three two-year institutions: Lamar Institute of Technology, Lamar State College Orange, and Lamar State College Port Arthur. Currently tenured faculty would retain their status, but existing tenure-track faculty would be reassigned, and no new tenure-track positions would be created. AAUP leaders warn that the move would create “two classes of institutions” within the system, those with tenure protections and those without.

A second proposed rule weakens due process protections for faculty facing dismissal. This move is a direct response to recent lawsuits brought by faculty against Texas State University for violating policy and constitutionally protected speech. Under the proposal, faculty terminated before the end of their contract could be subjected to “Summary Dismissal” procedures that deny them the right to appeal before a tribunal of peers, a longstanding principle of AAUP policy and shared governance in higher education.

“Tenure and peer review are cornerstones of academic freedom,” said Aimee Villarreal, Texas State University AAUP-AFT Chapter President. “Without them, faculty lose the protections necessary to teach, research, and speak freely without political interference or retaliation. An atmosphere of fear undercuts free inquiry and students pay the price.”

Villarreal’s comments were supported by presidents of the other three AAUP chapters of TSUS at Lamar University, Sam Houston State University, and Sul Ross State University.

AAUP representatives also pointed to the 1966 Statement on Government of Colleges and Universities, jointly endorsed by the AAUP and the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, which affirms faculty responsibility in matters of faculty status and institutional governance.

The proposed changes were discussed in TSUS Board committee meetings one week ahead of the full Board of Regents meeting scheduled for May 28–29 in Austin.

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