TCU to Close Gender and Race Studies Departments
University says restructuring reflects academic needs, not political pressure.
FORT WORTH — Texas Christian University (TCU) will close its Department of Women and Gender Studies and its Department of Comparative Race and Ethnic Studies at the end of the academic year, shifting remaining courses under the Department of English.
According to reporting from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, a source close to TCU cautioned against assuming federal politics influenced the decision, saying “university decisions are not influenced by external pressure.” In a statement, TCU said such restructuring is routine and intended to “ensure alignment with student and academic need” as well as efficient use of faculty and administrative resources. “Our university is growing,” the statement added, “which means that we need more faculty and staff in areas of strong academic demand, not less.”
The closures follow TCU’s April decision to eliminate its Office of Diversity and Inclusion and scrub DEI and LGBTQ information from its website. The university has not commented on the reasoning but maintains its Center for Connected Culture, which emphasizes "fostering an inclusive community."
Nationally, the Trump administration has targeted university programs it labels “radical,” cutting federal funding and urging institutions to adopt a new Compact for Academic Excellence. Seven of nine invited universities — including MIT, Brown, and the University of California — have declined to sign the compact, which favors eliminating race-, ethnicity-, and gender-based admissions considerations. Vanderbilt University and the University of Texas at Austin have not yet announced their decisions.
Previously, UOJ reported that trans and nonbinary identification has declined sharply among U.S. college students.
