Editor’s note: This column was submitted to the Texan by a member of the UT community.
Disclaimer: This piece is written in our personal capacities as students at the University of Texas at Austin. The views presented do not reflect those of any university organization or of the University of Texas at Austin.
As two of the many students that have spent the past few years working diligently to embed diversity, equity and inclusion into campus culture, we were devastated when the 88th Texas Legislature passed SB 17. We know very well how intertwined our identities are with our academic experiences, and recognize the many ways that the UT student body has benefitted from our university’s commitment to supporting marginalized students. Make no mistake: stripping institutions of higher education of their DEI offices is a massive step backwards.
Through our roles in the Senate of College Councils, we have been heavily involved in DEI advocacy on the UT campus. In recognition of the profound impact of DEI, Senate members took deliberate steps to develop internal DEI leadership through the creation of the Diversity Coordinator back in 2019. This decision then evolved into other roles, including the Equity & Inclusion Director, which was designed to advance accessibility and inclusivity within the classroom and the organization. As their successors, we expanded this to include developing intentional DEI practices to better serve and represent marginalized students in the student governance space, and to reckon with our organization’s difficult history of harm.
In this work, we witnessed the transformative nature of DEI in the relationships we built, new initiatives conducted by the committees and college councils, and the bolstering of long-term projects and advocacy through this lens of empathy and compassion. As we (a current and a former Equity & Inclusion Director) navigate the consequences of SB 17, we reflect upon the immense growth that came from years of intentional recruitment outreach; collaboration with organizers, student leaders, faculty, certain administrators, and staff; expansion of DEI into college council practices; and development of internal DEI resources. The loss of these roles and the language that has enabled us to speak explicitly about marginalized students’ experiences in a predominantly and historically white institution will drastically undermine our ability to advocate for students’ needs in the classroom and at the institutional level.
The pending changes cast a dark shadow over our institution, and the void left by SB 17 will undoubtedly diminish the sense of belonging UT has committed itself to. To support students going forward, UT administration must prioritize communication and active allyship. This starts with directly communicating UT System and UT Austin administrative updates to all students as soon as they occur, including information regarding the DEI Steering and Consultative Committees created by the President’s Office. Only six students sit on these committees while 53,000 others remain in the dark. Keeping all students informed, giving them the opportunity to voice their concerns by increasing the number of student representatives on the committee and implementing effective policies to address student needs are vital steps toward a brighter future on the Forty Acres.
As students, we remain personally committed to maintaining a welcoming environment that prioritizes all students’ needs, rooted in a thorough understanding of UT Austin’s complex history of exclusion and gendered and racial violence. We are lucky enough to have a seat on the Consultative Committee, and encourage those interested in voicing their thoughts to email us questions so we can keep one another informed and support each other through this transition. Additionally, Texas Students for DEI, an organizing collective established during the 88th Regular Session, regularly hosts teach-ins and town halls to discuss and advocate for DEI in higher education.
Floyd is a Plan II Honors and honors in advanced human development and family sciences senior from Fort Worth, TX. Kumar is a marketing junior from Plano, TX.
