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Coventina

(28,905 posts) Tue Nov 11, 2025, 03:33 PM Tuesday

Texas A&M faculty panel report says professor's firing violated her academic freedom

A Texas A&M University faculty committee created in the wake of two high-profile controversies that raised concerns about political interference in academic and personnel decisions found that the recent firing of English professor Melissa McCoul violated her academic freedom.

McCoul was fired in September after a video of her discussing gender identity in class was recorded without her knowledge and circulated online, drawing intense political and social media criticism. The university said she was fired because the content of her course did not match its catalog description. McCoul is appealing her termination.

In a report dated Sept. 25 and obtained by The Texas Tribune on Monday, the Academic Freedom Council concluded McCoul’s dismissal appeared to be based on what she taught rather than any failure to follow the course catalog. The council compared the course catalog entry, course description and McCoul’s syllabus and said the materials were consistent with one another. The catalog describes the class broadly as covering “representative writers, genres, texts and movements.”

The council also found that former President Mark A. Welsh III did not follow university rules for dismissing her. Those rules require a department head to draft the written charges for dismissal, seek approval from the dean and give the faculty member a notice of intent to dismiss along with five business days to respond. Welsh said on Sept. 9 he directed McCoul’s removal “effective immediately.”

https://www.kbtx.com/2025/11/11/texas-am-faculty-panel-report-says-professors-firing-violated-her-academic-freedom/

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I hope she sues, wins, and retires as a wealthy woman!!

5 replies

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Texas A&M faculty panel report says professor's firing violated her academic freedom (Original Post) Coventina Tuesday OP

More evidence of douche knobs attaining positions of authority and proceeding to misuse power for personal beliefs... wcmagumba Tuesday #1

So what now? Redleg Tuesday #2

Be thankful you don't work at Texas A&M. Paladin Tuesday #3

According to the wiki, McCoul was confronted/targeted by a student MagickMuffin Tuesday #4

Students should not have this much power oberle Tuesday #5

wcmagumba

(5,092 posts)

1. More evidence of douche knobs attaining positions of authority and proceeding to misuse power for personal beliefs...

Reply to Coventina (Original post)

Tue Nov 11, 2025, 03:39 PM

Tuesday

Redleg

(6,730 posts)

2. So what now?

Reply to Coventina (Original post)

Tue Nov 11, 2025, 03:50 PM

Tuesday

As a professor at a different university, I have to worry about shit like this happening. I did mention to my students today, without naming names, that I knew how tariffs and percentage discounts work. Some chuckled, others remained silent. I still covered DEI policies and practices in a previous session, albeit in a much briefer and less advocating form than usual. I haven't heard about any backlash and as far as I know, I am still getting my paycheck each month. Fingers crossed!

Paladin

(31,988 posts)

3. Be thankful you don't work at Texas A&M.

Reply to Redleg (Reply #2)

Tue Nov 11, 2025, 04:08 PM

Tuesday

I wish Professor McCoul the very best of luck---but Texas A&M is one of the most conservative universities in the country, and has been so for many years. If there's a means of derailing McCoul's teaching career, A&M will do what it can to see that she's punished---with full backing from the rightwing political hierarchy of the state. As you say: Fingers crossed for a fair outcome.

MagickMuffin

(17,990 posts)

4. According to the wiki, McCoul was confronted/targeted by a student

Reply to Coventina (Original post)

Tue Nov 11, 2025, 04:10 PM

Tuesday

September 2025 class video and resignation

In early September 2025, an unnamed Texas A&M University student was videotaped presenting an argument to professor Melissa McCoul, an English professor in a children's literature class, who was teaching. The student remarked "I'm not entirely sure this is legal to be teaching because according to our president, there's only two genders and he said he would be freezing agencies' funding programs that promote gender ideology. And this also very much goes against, not only myself but a lot of people's religious beliefs". A voice, believed to be the professor, says, "If you are uncomfortable in this class you do have the right to leave". The video was posted online by Brian Harrison, a member of the Texas House of Representatives. Harrison's posts also included undated audio recordings reportedly between the student and Welsh, in which the student told Welsh the professor should be fired and Welsh responded, "Well, that's not happening."

Welsh terminated McCoul's employment and later directed Mark Zoran, the dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, and Emily Johansen, the head of the English department, to be removed with support from Texas A&M University System Chancellor Glenn Hegar. He stated:

I learned this afternoon that key leaders in the College of Arts and Sciences approved plans to continue teaching course content that was not consistent with the course’s published description. As a result, I directed the provost to remove the dean and department head from their administrative positions, effective immediately. Our students use the published information in the course catalog to make important decisions about the courses they take in pursuit of their degrees. If we allow different course content to be taught from what is advertised, we let our students down. When it comes to our academic offerings, we must keep our word to our students and to the state of Texas.
Harmeet Dhillon, the United States Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the Department of Justice stated that the department would conduct an investigation into the situation.

Welsh submitted his resignation as president of Texas A&M University on September 18, 2025, which took in effect the following day. His final day as president was September 19, 2025.

oberle

(238 posts)

5. Students should not have this much power

Reply to Coventina (Original post)

Tue Nov 11, 2025, 07:51 PM

Tuesday

over the faculty. They are there to learn, and not to derail a professor's career. If they don't like the course, they should leave. I may be old fashioned, having been in college in the 60s and 70s. I do not like this new breed of entitled students.

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