Texas A&M University pumped the brakes on an upcoming conference trip after Gov. Greg Abbott, R., found out alone applicants of a particular race could attend.
On Monday, conservative activist Christopher Rufo posted an image from the university promoting the annual conference of the PhD project in Chicago. The application specified that the conference is “intended for historically underrepresented individuals considering business doctoral study,” and that only Black/African American, Latinx/Hispanic American, or Native American/Canadian Indigenous students were eligible.
“Texas A&M sponsors a trip to a DEI conference that bans whites and Asians from attending. The university falsely claims that this use of taxpayer dollars does not violate the state’s DEI ban. @TAMU supports racial segregation and breaks the law,” Rufo wrote.
The message eventually caught Abbott’s attention late Monday, threatening the university president’s job security if the matter was not corrected.
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‘No, no. It is against Texas law and unconstitutional. It will be resolved immediately, otherwise the president will be gone soon.” Abbott warned.
The university eventually issued a statement on its X account, reiterating that it does not discriminate on the basis of race compliance with SB-17a state law that bans diversity, equity and inclusion offices in Texas public colleges.
“Texas A&M does not support any organization, conference, process or activity that excludes people based on race, religion, gender, age or any other discriminatory factor. The intent of SB-17 is very clear in that regard. We will continue to honor both the letter and intent of the law.” read the message.
In a statement sent to Fox News digitalUniversity President Mark A. Welsh III acknowledged the request in question and admitted that the conference itself was “not in compliance” with state law, causing the trip to be canceled entirely.
“While the proper process for reviewing and approving participation in such events was followed, I do not believe we fully considered the spirit of our state law in making the initial decision to participate,” the statement said. “This particular conference’s restrictions on the acceptable race of participants are inconsistent with the intent of SB-17, and as a result, we will not send anyone to participate in this conference.”
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Welsh continued, “Texas A&M faculty and staff attend hundreds, if not thousands, of conferences and other events over the course of each academic year. We need to make sure that participation in those events is in line with the very clear guidelines that we have been given. given by our governing bodies.”
The statement was sent to Mays Business School staff and faculty.
Texas A&M responded to Governor Abbott’s threat by canceling an upcoming conference trip. (Ronda Churchill/Bloomberg via Getty Images | Photo by Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
Fox News Digital also reached out to the governor’s office for comment.
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The PhD Project Annual Conference was set up by the Pathways to Research and Doctoral Careers (PREDOC) consortium and will take place in March. PREDOC website described the application process as “exclusive” and “intended for historically underrepresented individuals considering business doctoral study.”
