Nearly three years ago, after campus riots supporting Hamas after the massacres of October 7, Academia made clear that it had become an epicenter of antisemitic, anti-Western values. The pro-Hamas 'occupations' and the attempts to impose a Judenrein in higher education and public life exposed a decades-long radicalization of 'education' in the US, funded by hoodwinked taxpayers. I argued to "decolonize Academia now" by ending all federal monies in any form to colleges and universities, no exceptions, full stop.
The Trump administration used a different strategy, leveraging these funding channels to force universities to end discriminatory practices and account for their antisemitism. It's had some success, but the Ivy Leagues in particular appear to be using the court system to wait out Donald Trump and hope for a more pliable successor. The dueling lawsuits have dropped out of the headlines, and evidence of change has grown thin to non-existent in the past months.
That may have changed in Texas, however, where Governor Greg Abbott and the state legislature took another approach. The state passed SB37, a bill that required public universities to provide a "foundational" education that prepares students for life in the real world. The state's flagship college, the University of Texas at Austin, has now submitted a new plan to revert back to a classical education, based on Western civilization and values:
While announced with much fanfare, details of what will actually be taught and by whom in UT Austin's new core curriculum aren't yet clear. Over the next year, UT Austin plans to develop courses to meet the new core requirements.
The university's plan calls for building those courses around three "pillars": social sciences, STEM fields, and arts and humanities. Under those umbrellas are themes courses would cover, such as "Masterworks of Literature" and "Principles of American Politics." STEM courses would include education in artificial intelligence. ...
UT Austin's general education reboot follows its first "extensive review" of core curriculum in over two decades, the university said in its announcement.
The curricular overhaul comes as political leaders in Texas and other Republican-led states look to tighten control over general education and other courses at public colleges.
Last year, Texas enacted a bill, known as SB 37, that gives public university boards the ability to review general education requirements and reject courses from the core at the board's discretion. It also called for general education that is "foundational," prepares students for civic life and the workforce, and that provides "a breadth of knowledge."
In its announcement, UT Austin said the new core curriculum plan "satisfies the requirements of SB 37."
This might just be lip service to a bill that generated significant opposition and antipathy from academics, both inside and outside of Texas. If so, UTA's Core Curriculum Task Force really committed to the bit. Its report on the proposed changes not only calls out the box-checking nature of the current status quo, it also embraces the need to provide a coherent foundation based on Western civilization and American civics:
Western Civilization
This requirement will broaden and deepen students’ knowledge of the roots of Western civilization, especially of the great developments and debates that have shaped it. In the current core, students are required to take two courses in U.S. History. We think that U.S. History is best understood in a broader perspective and that, despite the difficulty of defining the West in precise terms, there are identifiable developments and debates that have given Western civilization a distinctive character and that have directly shaped the founding and identity of the United States. Western civilization has also had a profound influence throughout the world, as it has interacted in complex ways with other civilizations. As we envision them, courses that meet this requirement will focus on capacious themes, great ideas, and broad historical developments, such as the Renaissance, the Reformation, and the Enlightenment, the rise of modern science and industry, or the development of liberal democratic nation-states.
The criteria:
• Courses should be on broad themes, major developments, and ideas that have transformed the world in profound and lasting ways.
• Courses should cover large swaths of time—two centuries at a minimum, and in many cases much more than that.
• Although courses may use textbooks, primary texts, secondary scholarship, or a blend of all three, they should be rigorous courses that resemble neither high-school survey courses nor highly specialized courses for advanced students.
Principles of American Politics
Courses fulfilling this requirement will take up themes of enduring significance in American politics. The courses will focus on issues that have long been central to American political life, such as the character of American constitutionalism, the relationship between freedom and equality, and the scope of individual rights. Courses that provide an overview of the structure and principles of American government will meet this requirement. So will courses that focus on broad themes and questions— for instance, on the development of American democracy over time, the challenges of federalism, America’s role in the world, or the meaning and application of America’s founding principles. By helping students understand the foundations of our political system and the great debates that have shaped American political life, these courses will help students become responsible citizens who can understand and discuss complex political issues.
If UTA takes this seriously, it represents the first step toward real reform, at least in publicly funded universities. Talk is cheap, of course, even and perhaps especially in Academia. However, Manhattan Institute senior fellow John Sailer declares himself "definitely bullish" on prospects for real change at UTA in a thread on X, compiled by Thread Reader:
UT Austin just proposed overhauling its core curriculum. Each newly proposed requirement has highly specific criteria. Meaning a more coherent sequence, with a western civ focus. Its a big break from the typical flagship core. I'm definitely bullish. ...
Here's UT Austin's proposed core requirements. Notably, with four separate courses covering western civ, "great questions of human life," US history, and American politics already.
Though, what's more noteworthy is what these courses actually entail...
"Great Questions of Human Life" is basically a great books course. It'll focus on selected works from a list of 40 "great thinkers," and aim for classes of 30 students or fewer--a big deal: for a course every student takes, that means hundreds of section.
"Masterworks of Literature" will require every student to take a course in either American, English, or world literature.
This is much, much narrower than the typical English area requirement. It'll be very interesting to see how its implemented.
Late last week, the Chronicle of Higher Education picked up on the changes. Their report is behind their comprehensive paywall, but this tweet suggests that they see it as a signal of cooperation with the new law and the GOP's effort to restore the classical approach to education:
New: Leaders at UT-Austin want first-year undergrads spending less time in niche core courses and more time studying Western civilization.
— Garrett Shanley (@garrettshanley) August 13, 2026
Courses like The History of College Football” are out; the Great Books are in.
w/ @meganzahneis https://t.co/qJKnWr3hf6
There has already been some rumbling on campus about the legislative order, but, as Forbes points out, UTA had begun the review process before SB37 passed. It also notes another reason why the tenured class objects to the law, emphasis mine:
The curriculum review occurs in a special context in Texas, which passed a 2025 state law requing the governing boards of its public universities to review an institution’s undergraduate courses to be sure they are adequately preparing students for life and the workforce. SB 37 also contained several controversial component, including overhauling public university governance in Texas and demoting faculty senates to strictly an advisory, rather than policy-making, role.
However, UT-Austin’s curriculum review preceded that law. The Board of Regents has yet to vote on UT-Austin’s proposed changes. Plans call for faculty to now begin working on new courses, with the full curriculum set to be implemented in fall 2028.
The demotion is long overdue. The previous structure may have made some sense in an era where Academia was an institution that earned its public trust, but it now just allows the inmates to run the taxpayer-funded asylum. And here's another reason why tenured elites will push back against this return to actual education rather than ideological indoctrination:
UT-Austin’s plan is likely to be a trend-setter. Either because of legislative mandates or through their own initiative, look for more universities to begin reviewing and revamping their core curricula.
That's what Academia truly fears – that legislatures will take control over publicly funded universities to force them to educate rather than conduct ideological indoctrination and pursue critical thinking rather than struggle sessions. The progressive-Marxist elite didn't conduct its Long March through these institutions just to have the people footing the bill decolonize it out from underneath them. Let's hope this is legitimate – and effective.
Editor’s Note: Hollywood, academia, and liberal elites are out of touch with the average American.
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