The President of Texas A&M University, Mark Welsh, resigned last week amid controversy over a viral video between a professor and a student debating gender ideology.
Welsh stepped down officially on Friday, September 19, according to a press release where the Chancellor Glenn Hegar thanked Welsh for his service to the university and the nation.
“President Welsh is a man of honor who has led Texas A&M with selfless dedication,” said Hegar. “We are grateful for his service and contributions. At the same time, we agree that now is the right moment to make a change and to position Texas A&M for continued excellence in the years ahead.”
The former president resigned while the university faces heated backlash after a video was posted of a student calling out a professor for teaching gender ideology in the classroom.
Professor Melissa McCoul was sharing an image of a “gender unicorn” that demonstrates concepts of gender expressions, identity and sexuality while reading “Jude Saves the World,” a novel about a 12-year-old who comes out as nonbinary, according to The Texas Tribune.
“[M]y Administration will defend women’s rights and protect freedom of conscience by using clear and accurate language and policies that recognize women are biologically female, and men are biologically male,” Trump wrote in the executive order.
State Rep. Brian Harrison, R-Texas, reposted the video on X.
“The governor and lieutenant governor and speaker have been telling everybody for two years now that we passed bans on DEI and transgender indoctrination in public universities,” Harrison wrote on his X account. “The only little problem with that? It’s a complete lie. … The state of Texas — despite what the governor said in his tweet yesterday, that this is a violation of law — there is no state law that we passed.”
Professor McCoul was later fired, according to press reports.
Former A&M President Welsh allegedly defended the inclusion of LGBTQ content in the classroom.
“Those people don’t get to pick who their clients are, what citizens they serve and they want to understand the issues affecting the people that they’re going to treat,” Welsh said in an audio recording posted by Harrison on X. “So there is a professional reason to teach some of these courses.”
In the past few years, Texas has been one of many states fighting LGBTQ and diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in schools.
As part of a legal settlement with medical associations and advocacy groups, the current presidential administration has agreed to restore more than 100 websites and online resources related to gender identity and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
“I am extremely proud of the health care community in Washington state and our partners in this case for pushing back on this egregious example of government overreach” said Dr. John Bramhall, president of the Washington State Medical Association (WSMA), the lead plaintiffs in the lawsuit. “This was not a partisan issue-open data benefits everyone and ensuring its availability should be a bipartisan priority.”
In January, the president issued an executive order directing federal agencies to eliminate references to “gender” and “gender identity” from federal policies, documents, and public-facing materials. In response, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) removed public health data from federal websites, including information on pregnancy risks, painkiller addiction, and the AIDS crisis. Hundreds of webpages addressing health concerns relevant to the LGBTQ+ community, including the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) HIV risk-reduction tool, were removed.
“This action proves the … administration’s goal of making it as difficult as possible for LGBTQ Americans to find federal resources or otherwise see ourselves reflected under his presidency,” GLAAD’s President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis said in January.
Physicians, scientists, and other medical professionals who relied on these resources were left scrambling. The Washington State Medical Association (WSMA) and other groups filed suit, arguing that the removals were “arbitrary, capricious, and unreasoned,” and violated federal transparency laws.
“This was trusted health information that vanished in a blink of an eye-resources that, among other things, physicians rely on to manage patients’ health conditions and overall care,” said Dr. Bramhall. “Not only was our ability to provide care to our patients compromised, but our trust in our federal health institutions has also been badly shaken.”
As part of the agreed settlement finalized earlier this month, the government must restore these webpages and cease deleting other resources. Graham Short, a spokesperson for WSMA, told the Associated Press that the organization expects the websites to be fully restored in the coming weeks.
Despite the settlement, HHS stated that it “remains committed to its mission of removing radical gender and DEI ideology from federal programs, subject to applicable law, to ensure taxpayer dollars deliver meaningful results for the American people.”
Separately, in July, a judge overseeing a similar lawsuit brought by Doctors for America ordered the government to restore additional websites that were removed. The Associated Press reported that 167 of those sites had been reinstated, while 33 were still under review.
A senior Heritage Foundation official and co-author of the far-right Project 2025 agenda has filed a comprehensive public records request targeting more than 70 courses at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, demanding access to teaching materials that reference diversity, race, gender, and LGBTQ+ identities.
According to UNC’s public records portal, Mike Howell, executive director of the Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project, submitted the request on July 2, asking UNC to turn over syllabi, lecture slides, assignments, and internal communications that include any of 30 flagged terms. Among them: “transgender,” “LGBTQ+,” “cisgender,” “queer,” “intersectionality,” “nonbinary,” “white privilege,” and “restorative justice.” The request spans content shared since Jan. 19, 2025, and directs the university to search platforms such as Canvas, Microsoft Teams, Signal, and Slack.
The courses flagged by the Oversight Project include Gender and Sexuality in Islam, Transnational Black Feminist Thought and Practice, Islam and Sexual Diversity, Race and Gender in the Atlantic World, and Black Families in Social and Contemporary Contexts. Also targeted are courses like Diversity and Inclusion at Work, Diversity in Education, Social Theory and Cultural Diversity, and Gender and Sexuality in Middle Eastern Literature.
Howell cited two executive orders signed by President Donald Trump earlier this year, Executive Orders 14151 and 14173, which condition federal funding on the elimination of DEI-related content. In the request, Howell argued that the records “will shed light on potential inconsistencies between internal practices and public representations made by officials in a matter of substantial national importance.”
Since taking office in January, Trump has aggressively implemented policies that target diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, as well as gender and LGBTQ+ protections. Though he previously distanced himself from Project 2025, calling some of its authors “severe right” and its proposals “seriously extreme,” his administration has moved swiftly to enact many of its recommendations. The nearly 1,000-page blueprint, authored by the Heritage Foundation and allied organizations, calls for the dismantling of DEI programs, bans on transgendermilitary service, elimination of non-discrimination protections, and the closure of the Department of Education. Many of the document’s contributors now hold key posts in federal agencies.
Scholars have long cautioned that excluding race, gender, and sexuality from coursework risks reinforcing bias rather than promoting academic neutrality. The American Psychological Association encourages inclusive curricula that reflect students’ lived experiences. In a 1992 paper, psychologist Susan B. Goldstein noted that even cross-cultural psychology can marginalize women and LGBTQ+ people when it generalizes findings from white, heterosexual men as universal. She urged faculty to treat diversity as central to understanding human behavior, not an elective or ideological add-on. A study in the Harvard Educational Review found that engagement with racially diverse peers enhances students’ critical thinking, academic growth, and civic awareness.
UNC has not yet fulfilled the Oversight Project’s request. A university spokesperson told Inside Higher Ed, which first reported the story, that course materials are “the intellectual property of the preparer” and the university is still determining what, if any, documents will be released.
Chris Petsko, a professor whose course was among those targeted, told Inside Higher Ed he will not comply. He said the request is an intimidation tactic designed to distort academic work and stifle inclusive teaching. On LinkedIn, he advised fellow faculty to review institutional intellectual property policies.
Howell dismissed objections. “Syllabi are public records and belong to the public,” he told Inside Higher Ed. “If a professor is too much of a wimp to let me read his syllabus then he’s in the wrong business.”
Howell has previously drawn scrutiny for hypocrisy. In 2024, The Advocatereported on a 2012 Yelp photo showing Howell smiling beside a friend in drag, despite his vocal condemnations of drag culture and LGBTQ+ rights. When contacted, Howell confirmed the photo’s authenticity and dismissed it as Halloween mischief.
GLAAD President Sarah Kate Ellis called Howell’s behavior “the definition of hypocrisy” at the time, adding that Project 2025 is a “dangerous, unhinged playbook” that exposes the intent of “anti-LGBTQ extremists hell-bent on destroying democracy.”
The mother of a transgender child who tried to speak out against proposed changes to her school district’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies was forcibly removed by four police officers when she said one word at a meeting of the City Schools of Decatur Board of Education on Tuesday evening.
That word was “cowards.”
“I’m practicing my rights as a parent. I’m in no way resisting,” she said as she was carried out. “I’m not resisting, and this is what fascists do!”
Kotler went to the emergency board meeting to speak against changes to the district’s DEI policy, which used to require that “all learning environments… be inclusive, safe, secure, and supportive while also ensuring that no student group is marginalized.” This policy, as well as four others, was changed to remove words like “equity” and “Americans with Disabilities Act.” Two of the policies were rescinded completely.
The district’s DEI policy now states that it is “designed to achieve fair and just access to opportunity and resources that provide all humans the ability to thrive.”
Kotler, who is the mother of three children, including one transgender daughter and one nonbinary child, went to the meeting and shouted “Cowards!” at the board. Advocate reports that Board Chair Carmen Sulton asked her to leave.
“I said one word, I have already stated I have no intention of speaking again until public comment,” she responded. “I’m going to sit here. I have offered that if it makes the board feel comfortable, you, as a security employee, are welcome to sit next to me. If I speak again outside of public comment, I will leave. I have the right to be here, I have not used harsh language or threats.”
Police then approached her, but she didn’t get up. So they lifted her out of her seat and dragged her away, dropping her off on the stairs in front of the building.
“I’m practicing my rights as a parent. I’m in no way resisting,” she said as she was dragged off. “I’m not resisting and this is what fascists do!”
“It’s beyond evil that anyone is threatening these programs,” she later told Atlanta News First. “Our children spend a huge chunk of their lives at school. Their own sense of self and self-worth is developed at school. If we stop policies and programs that make those spaces inclusive and safe for everyone, we know what happens.”
“There are marginalized children and economically disadvantaged children in our district who rely on these programs.”
Decatur’s is one of many school districts across the country rewording their DEI policies in light of the new presidential administration’s antipathy towards promoting equal rights for minority students, particularly those who are transgender and nonbinary.
The University of Michigan is immediately shutting down two offices and an effort dedicated to diversity, equity and inclusion, and shifting the resources to other student programs, university officials said Thursday, after the Trump administration had threatened to cut off funding.
The email announcement by top UM officials, including President Santa Ono, said UM is closing its Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, the Office for Health Equity and Inclusion as well as discontinuing its DEI 2.0 Strategic Plan. The moves came as the university has taken other actions, such as ending diversity statements in faculty hiring, in a bid to stop “litmus tests” that restrict the diversity of thought.
It is unclear how many people are employed at UM in DEI work, but the conservative Heritage Foundation ranked UM in 2021 as having the most DEI staff members in the nation, with 163 employees. The regents told The Detroit News the number has since grown, but they are not sure by how much.
A report in 2024 by the New York Times on UM’s DEI initiatives estimated them to cost $250 million. UM Chief Diversity Officer Tabbye Chavous later said the New York Times story was “filled with misinformation, disinformation and, sadly, sexism.”
UM officials said Thursday they will shift the DEI resources to programs for students, “such as financial aid, mental health resources, pre-professional counseling and other efforts that strengthen community, promote a sense of belonging and expand accessibility.”
“These decisions have not been made lightly. We recognize the changes are significant and will be challenging for many of us, especially those whose lives and careers have been enriched by and dedicated to programs that are now pivoting,” said the message, which also was signed by Laurie McCauley, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs; Marschall Runge, executive vice president for medical affairs; and Geoffrey Chatas, executive vice president and chief financial officer.
“We are deeply grateful for the meaningful contributions of leaders, faculty and staff who have advanced our ongoing efforts to create an ever-moreinclusive and respectful community.”
But Robert Sellers, the James S. Jackson distinguished professor of psychology and an education professor at the University of Michigan, said he was extremely disappointed, angry and bewildered at the university’s decision.
“The university has framed diversity, equity and inclusion as a core set of values that resulted in many, many, many efforts that have been successful at the university to make it more welcoming,” Sellers said Thursday. “Every particular measure of importance the university has increased as its diversity increased.”
On X, UM Regent Sarah Hubbard posted a tweet announcing the change as she noted that the regents ended the use of diversity statements in faculty hiring, which is “now expanded university wide and statements related to a person’s identity or commitment to DEI will no longer be solicited or considered in admissions, hiring, promotion, awards or reviews for faculty and staff.” Hubbard supported the move as a way to promote ideological diversity on campus.
“We are eliminating bureaucratic overspending and making Michigan more accessible,” the Republican regent said. “I will continue to push for even greater financial support for talented students with financial need.”
Derek Peterson, a UM history professor and member of the Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs, called the decisions “a pretty dramatic policy change put through without any attempt to engage faculty government.”
“It’s a capitulation, an embarrassment, a departure from our mission as a university,” Peterson said. “It turns the university’s back on what we thought were core values of this institution in the name of expediency.”
UM’s moves followed a mid-February Trump administration order giving Michigan schools and universities until the end of the month to dump diversity initiatives or risk losing federal money.
In a memo to educational institutions, the U.S. Education Department gave an ultimatum to stop using “racial preferences” as a factor in admissions, financial aid, hiring or other areas. Schools were given 14 days to end any practice that treats students or workers differently because of their race or lose their eligibility for federal money.
The Chronicle of Higher Education reported it has since tracked DEI changes at 270 college campuses in 38 states.
Among them are Ohio State University, which is closing its Office of Diversity and Inclusion and canceling some of its services. The University of Southern California, meanwhile, has announced plans to dissolve its university-wide Office of Inclusion and Diversity, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Other schools have said they will remain committed to building diversityon campus, while still nodding to the Trump administration’s push to dismantle DEI efforts.
Northeastern University’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion has changed its name to “Belonging in Northeastern.”
Some institutions are distancing themselves from the PhD Project, an organization that helps Black and Latino students pursue business degrees. The U.S. Education Department cited the nonprofit when it announced March 14 it was investigating dozens of universities, including UM, for alleged racial discrimination.
The University of Kentucky, the University of Wyoming and Arizona State University all said they were discontinuing support for the PhD Project.
Student: ‘My heart is broken’
The move in the progressive Ann Arbor community Thursday sparked a backlash. Some students, such as junior Pragya Choudhary, said they feel betrayed by the university.
“How do you say you’re removing the office of DEI, but pledging to continue all of these things as if that’s not what the office of DEI was there for?” said Choudhary, who was in class when he heard the news. “How are you going to say that ‘Oh, we’ll still have these cultural events,’ when clearly we’re not going to, because you’re getting rid of the office that would help us put those events on?”
Choudhary chose to attend UM because the university celebrated diversity and he had hoped this would continue. In his first address to the university community in 2022, Ono pledged his commitment to diversity and inclusion efforts, promising to invest in and develop staff.
“This is, it’s flying in the face of every value I held this university to. My heart is broken,” Choudhary said.
The UM’s Thursday email acknowledged progress since the launch of the university’s DEI strategic plan in 2016. First-generation undergraduate students have increased 46%, while undergraduate Pell recipients rose more than 32%, driven in part by programs such as the Go Blue Guarantee free tuition program and Wolverine Pathways, a free college readiness course offered by seventh through 12th graders in poorer areas such as Detroit and Ypsilanti, according to UM officials.
“Over the course of our strategic efforts, we have heard strong pride in the university’s support for student-facing programs,” the UM message said. “We have also heard concerns about the balance of resources between administration and direct student support. Some in our campus community have voiced frustration that they did not feel included in DEI initiatives and that the programming fell short in fostering connections among diverse groups.”
University web pages will be evaluated for compliance with federal executive orders and guidance, the Thursday release said, and theuniversity’s general counsel will start an “expedited review” to make sure policies, programs and practices comply with federal law.
UM professor Sellers said he found it particularly disappointing that the university insinuated that DEI programs were not as successful as the data shows.
“If they choose to run and hide from DEI, at least have the courage to say they’re running and hiding from DEI,” Sellers said.
The decision to disband DEI efforts will affect the university’s ability to serve the broader state of Michigan, he said.
“This is how we like to refer to ourselves as ‘leaders and best,’ when, in fact, we are not leading and we are definitely not the best,” Sellers said.
Where savings will go
Savings from the shuttering of the two DEI offices will be used for the Go Blue Guarantee and go to families with incomes of $125,000 or less as well as to expand efforts like the Blavin Scholars Program, which helps undergraduate students who have experienced foster care or kinship care, according to the UM release.
The university will also maintain multicultural student spaces and residence halls like the Trotter Multicultural Center and the Spectrum Center for gender and sexuality resources.
Another initiative is to explore ways to help student achievement through “improved advising, counseling and pre-professional guidance, as well as continue investing in innovative approaches, such as 24/7 AI tutors and a personal AI assistant for every member of the community,” the university said.
Hubbard emphasized that there are benefits to ending the DEI offices and moving the money elsewhere.
“Ending DEI programs will also allow us to better expand diversity of thought and free speech on our campus,” the regent said. “The end of litmus test hiring and curtailment of speech stops now. People from all walks of life, representing a variety of ideologies, will be welcome at Michigan.
Among the moves was the UM board’s decision in October to adopt an institutional neutrality policy that prohibits university officials from taking a stance on political or social issues unless they are related to the internal governance of the university. Critics disagreed, saying university policy-making requires leaders to take stances on issues.
“As we move forward with creation of the Institute on Civil Discourse, I look forward to hosting a variety of perspectives on campus,” Hubbard said. “Today’s announcement follows a number of policy and process changes that are making our campus safer and stronger as a place of learning and academic excellence. I’m honored to be a leader at this amazing institution.”
Florida’s 12 public universities are eliminating courses that may “distort significant historical events” or “teach identity politics” to comply with S.B. 266, a law passed by the state legislature in 2023. This law restricts schools from using state or federal funds for initiatives advocating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), or promoting political and social activism. In addition, it has led to the closure of LGBTQ+ student centers and the dismantling of cultural support programs on campuses.
As a result, universities are scrapping classes such as Anthropology of Race & Ethnicity, Introduction to LGBTQ+ Studies, Sociology of Gender, Women in Literature, Chinese Calligraphy, The History of Food and Eating, Humanities Perspectives on Gender and Sexuality, Social Geography, and a course on Magic, Witchcraft, and Religion. A class examining racial and gender inequality and crime, titled Social Problems, is also being impacted, according to a Politico report.
Some of these courses have been removed entirely, while others have lost their “general education” designation, meaning they will only be available as electives for upper-level students in certain disciplines, rather than as part of the broader general education curriculum. Additionally, some course descriptions and student outcomes have been revised to ensure compliance with the law.
The Board of Governors will review each institution’s proposed course offerings for the 2025-26 academic year and may suggest changes. Schools that refuse to comply could risk losing vital state funding or face other penalties from Governor Ron DeSantis and the Board.
Critics argue that this law undermines academic freedom, enforces government-approved viewpoints, and could drive talented students and educators away from Florida’s universities. Some also warn that the law could jeopardize the accreditation of certain schools that are required by national accreditation bodies to have DEI programs as a core component of their education. Others have expressed concern about the vague language of the law, which leaves many unsure about what is permitted and what is not.
Historically, decisions about course content have been left to individual universities. However, this law is part of Governor DeSantis’ broader effort to challenge DEI policies and shift the state’s educational institutions toward a more conservative ideology.
While signing the law in May 2023, DeSantis said, “DEI has basically been used as a veneer to impose an ideological agenda, and that is wrong. If you want to do things like gender ideology, go to Berkeley, go to some of these other places… You don’t just get to take taxpayer dollars and do whatever the heck you want to do and think that’s somehow OK.”
This law follows DeSantis’ 2022 signing of the so-called Stop WOKE Act, which bans educational programs on racism and gender-based discrimination in schools and businesses. That law is currently on hold as courts review its constitutionality.
Federal Judge Mark E. Walker, who blocked the Stop WOKE Act in 2022, described the law as “positively dystopian,” saying it “officially bans professors from expressing disfavored viewpoints in university classrooms while permitting unfettered expression of the opposite viewpoints.” He emphasized that academic freedom should allow professors to express their perspectives, as long as they do not only align with state-approved views.
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