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A Texas A&M University committee has determined that the institution acted inappropriately when it dismissed a professor earlier this year, following controversy over a classroom video. The video, which sparked the incident, showed a student objecting to a children’s literature lesson that included discussions on gender identity.
The committee concluded that the university did not adhere to proper procedures and failed to establish sufficient grounds for the dismissal of Melissa McCoul. McCoul, a seasoned lecturer in the English department with over ten years of experience, was terminated after Republican leaders, including Governor Greg Abbott, demanded her dismissal upon viewing the footage.
Earlier this week, the committee unanimously decided that “the summary dismissal of Dr. McCoul was not justified.” Texas A&M has since released a statement indicating that interim President Tommy Williams has received the committee’s recommendation, which is advisory in nature. He is expected to reach a decision in the coming days or weeks after a thorough review.
Amanda Reichek, McCoul’s attorney, noted that this matter seems likely to escalate into a legal battle. She expressed concerns that the university intends to persist in contesting the case, while the interim president remains under similar political pressures.
“Dr. McCoul believes that the weak justifications offered by A&M for her termination are merely a facade for the university’s real motive: yielding to Governor Abbott’s demands,” Reichek stated.
The video roiled campus and led to sharp criticism of university president Mark Welsh, who later resigned, but he didn’t offer a reason and never mentioned the video in his resignation announcement.
Welsh had said McCoul was fired after he learned she had continued teaching content in a children’s literature course “that did not align with any reasonable expectation of standard curriculum for the course.” He also said that the course content was not matching its catalog descriptions. But her lawyer disputed that, and said McCoul was never instructed to change her course content in any way, shape or form.
Earlier this month, the Texas A&M Regents decided that professors now need to receive approval from the school president to discuss some race and gender topics. The new policy states that no academic course “will advocate race or gender ideology, or topics related to sexual orientation or gender identity” unless approved in advance by a campus president.
Various universities and their presidents around the country, including Harvard and Columbia have come under scrutiny from conservative critics and President Donald Trump administration over diversity, equity and inclusion practices and their responses to campus protests.
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