Gov. Abbott said on X<\/a>, formerly known as Twitter, that “Texas is targeting professors who are more focused on pushing leftist ideologies rather than preparing students to lead our nation.” <\/p>\n Art Markman has worked at the University of Texas at Austin for 27 years.<\/p>\n The move comes after Texas State professor Tom Alter was fired<\/a> for talking at an online socialist conference. Texas A&M professor Melissa McCoul’s employment was also terminated<\/a> earlier this year after a video of her discussing gender identities with a student went viral. <\/p>\n Markman’s dismissal from his administrative role is also happening after UT Austin was among nine universities asked by the White House to sign a compact<\/a> in exchange for an advantage in accessing federal funds. The compact asks universities to revise governance structures to create an environment where there is no violence against conservative ideas, among other requests. UT System officials said they were “enthusiastically” reviewing the compact. <\/p>\n Students and faculty at UT Austin have also expressed concerns over academic freedom after the UT system announced an audit on courses<\/a> related to gender studies. Students in Austin and Dallas have filed a lawsuit against the UT System<\/a> to prevent the enforcement of a new state law that they argue restricts their constitutional right to free speech on campus. <\/p>\n Markman confirmed with KUT he is still a\u00a0faculty member<\/a>\u00a0in the College of Liberal Arts. He told KUT he’s focusing on gratitude throughout this process and would rather not “get caught up in these political discussions.” A UT Austin spokesperson said the university doesn’t comment on personnel matters. <\/p>\n Juan M Dominguez, another professor in the Psychology Department, was named interim senior vice provost <\/a>for academic affairs. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n