XPost: alt.education, alt.politics.equality, alt.fan.rush-limbaugh   
   XPost: talk.politics.guns   
   From: info@nw.edu   
      
   A week after state Sen. Brandon Creighton warned Texas university system   
   administrators about the state's expectations for higher education   
   institutions to comply with Senate Bill 17 — an anti-DEI law that went   
   into effect in January — the University of Texas has laid off at least 60   
   staff members who previously worked in diversity, equity and inclusion-   
   related positions, according to three people with knowledge of the   
   terminations.   
      
   UT has not confirmed to the American-Statesman the number of staff   
   positions that have been eliminated or how many employees will be laid   
   off, but on Tuesday afternoon, a person with knowledge of the terminations   
   said at least 60 people have lost their jobs, 40 of them in the Division   
   of Campus and Community Engagement alone. The layoffs are effective in 90   
   days or more, people familiar with the terminations told the Statesman. UT   
   did not respond to a Statesman request for comment.   
      
   UT is also closing the Division of Campus and Community Engagement,   
   previously known as the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement.   
   President Jay Hartzell said in an email to the UT community on Tuesday   
   afternoon, which was obtained by the Statesman, that though the school   
   made changes before Jan. 1 to comply with SB 17, "we knew that more work   
   would be required to utilize our talent and resources most effectively in   
   support of our teaching and research missions, and ultimately, our   
   students."   
      
   "The new law has changed the scope of some programs on campus, making them   
   broader and creating duplication with long-standing existing programs   
   supporting students, faculty, and staff," Hartzell said. "Following those   
   reviews, we have concluded that additional measures are necessary to   
   reduce overlaps, streamline student-facing portfolios, and optimize and   
   redirect resources into our fundamental activities of teaching and   
   research."   
      
   Hartzell said the remaining programs will be redistributed among other   
   divisions. He said funding that previously supported DEI initiatives will   
   now be redirected to "support teaching and research." Student support,   
   however, will be available for the rest of the semester.   
      
   "The positions that provided support for those associate and assistant   
   deans and a small number of staff roles across campus that were formerly   
   focused on DEI will no longer be funded," Hartzell said.   
      
   Hartzell added in his email that the Division of Student Affairs will work   
   to ensure student-facing support lasts through the rest of the semester as   
   do student workers' positions, and that "staff members whose positions are   
   being eliminated will have the opportunity to apply and be considered for   
   existing open positions at the University, and resources will be made   
   available to support them."   
      
   The university did not clarify how many or which programs and positions   
   have been eliminated.   
      
   Why are changes influenced by SB 17 still being made?   
   SB 17 bans DEI offices, initiatives and employees from fulfilling those   
   functions at Texas public universities and colleges. In Creighton’s March   
   26 letter to university system chancellors and boards of regents, he   
   expressed disappointment that some colleges might just be changing office   
   names and titles as part of their compliance, and he cautioned that “this   
   letter should serve as notice that this practice is unacceptable.” He   
   warned administrators that lawmakers can take legal action and even freeze   
   state funding for their institutions if they do not fully comply with SB   
   17.   
      
   "Recognized as the most robust DEI prohibition in the nation, this bill   
   mandates a fundamental shift in the operation of our higher education   
   institutions," Creighton said in his letter.   
      
   A UT department chair who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they   
   were not authorized to discuss the terminations publicly, told the   
   Statesman that they were contacted by their dean Tuesday morning to notify   
   them that an employee in the department would be terminated. That   
   employee, according to the chair, had previously worked in a DEI-related   
   role but was reassigned to a new position and duties as part of the   
   school's compliance with SB 17.   
      
   In previous communications about the anti-DEI law, Hartzell had assured   
   the community that the school will continue to support all students while   
   complying with the law. Hartzell, since December, had not addressed the   
   university community about the school's continued efforts to comply with   
   SB 17 until Tuesday when he announced the Division of Campus and Community   
   Engagement was shutting down.   
      
   'Y'all are taking away lifesaving services'   
   UT senior Bibi Macias, a first-generation college student involved in   
   student agencies previously housed in the now-shuttered Multicultural   
   Engagement Center, said the news of staff members losing their jobs and as   
   well as the Division of Campus and Community Engagement (formerly   
   Diversity and Community Engagement Division) closing is "disgusting."   
      
   "Heartbreaking and devastating don't begin to cover my feelings about it,"   
   Macias said. "Y'all are taking away lifesaving services."   
      
   As a first-generation student, Macias said, the Community Engagement   
   Division has been an important resource for her. She said its support had   
   a drastic impact on students' experience and comfort on campus. But she   
   also worries about the staff members, who have dedicated so much to   
   support students.   
      
   "They're messing with people's lives," Macias said.   
      
   Students and professors have accused the university of overcomplying with   
   the law — UT has shut down programs like Monarch, which helped   
   undocumented students navigate school applications, internships and   
   financial aid; and shuttered the Multicultural Engagement Center, which   
   served as a “home away from home” for students of multiple multicultural   
   identities and was open to everyone. They've argued that SB 17 and the   
   university's compliance with it is creating a chilling effect on   
   recruitment and retention - Macias fears it will affect graduation rates   
   for marginalized student groups.   
      
   Some conservative lawmakers, who have celebrated ending DEI programs at   
   universities and colleges, have said the Legislature's work to end "woke"   
   policies, or identity politics, at institutions of higher learning is not   
   finished.   
      
   UT, like all public universities, went through drastic changes in the   
   weeks and months leading up to SB 17's Jan. 1 effective date. In December,   
   UT announced it was replacing its Gender and Sexuality Center with the   
   Women’s Community Center, shifting the center's focus from LGBTQ+ issues   
   to gender-related matters.   
      
   “With its depth, breadth and extraordinary expertise, the Division of   
   Campus and Community Engagement will continue to distinguish UT Austin as   
   uniquely capable of meeting the demands of a rapidly changing campus,   
      
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