Texas officials launched a website Friday for people to submit complaints against public universities after a new state law pledged increased oversight of the institutions.
The portal is overseen by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s Office of the Ombudsman, which was created under SB 37, the state law that took effect Sept. 1. The office, which is tasked with ensuring universities comply with state law, will investigate reports submitted through the website and can recommend withholding funding from schools under investigation.
In October, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott appointed Brandon Simmons, the former chair of Texas Southern University’s Board of Regents, to lead the office. Simmons has started meeting with public university leaders across the state, according to a Friday release.
Students, employees and faculty at a public university can file a complaint through the website if they believe a public university is violating certain state laws. That includes the state’s ban on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and some provisions of SB 37, including those related to the general education curriculum review and faculty senates.
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Members of the public can submit general feedback through a separate portal on the website.
The launch of the website comes after months of heightened scrutiny at state universities, particularly over civil discourse and ideological teachings, by conservative lawmakers. The pressure has led regents and university leaders, including those at Texas A&M University System and Texas Tech University System, to institute new policies limiting how professors can teach about race and gender.
The ombudsman’s office can recommend lawmakers bar a school from spending state funding while it is under investigation.
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State support is one of the main funding sources for public universities, though tuition and fees typically provide the largest revenue chunk. At the University of North Texas, for example, state appropriations will provide 16% of this fiscal year’s revenue. The University of Texas at Austin sees 22% of its budget come from the state endowment and appropriations.
Supporters of increased oversight say the measures are necessary to hold higher education institutions accountable. Abbott has said the new ombudsman’s office will “help ensure Texas’ higher education institutions continue to set the national standard and prepare our students to thrive.”
The Texas Conference of the American Association of University Professors has warned that the office, with “little provision for due process,” is “ripe for abuse.”
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Simmons said the website, paired with engagement on Texas campuses, will lead to a “collaborative, productive partnership with our institutional leaders and students.”
“Texas leads the nation with top-ranked, rapidly ascending universities and our office is here to support these great institutions in serving the next generation of Texas students,” he said in the release.
The DMN Education Lab deepens the coverage and conversation about urgent education issues critical to the future of North Texas.
The DMN Education Lab is a community-funded journalism initiative, with support from Bobby and Lottye Lyle, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Dallas Foundation, Dallas Regional Chamber, Deedie Rose, Garrett and Cecilia Boone, Judy and Jim Gibbs, The Meadows Foundation, The Murrell Foundation, Ron and Phyllis Steinhart, Solutions Journalism Network, Southern Methodist University, Sydney Smith Hicks, and the University of Texas at Dallas. The Dallas Morning News retains full editorial control of the Education Lab’s journalism.