Senate Bill 506 Defeated in Virginia
In April, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin vetoed legislation that would have had a severe and negative impact on the accountability structure of Virginia’s public institutions of higher education. Had Senate Bill 506 been signed into law, public college and university governing boards would have been beholden to the narrow interests of the institutions they serve rather than to the taxpayers of Virginia. To read more, click here.
Re-evaluating DEI Initiatives
State legislatures and higher education institutions across the country are reconsidering the amount of money and other resources invested in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. The University of Texas–Dallas recently closed its DEI office in order to comply with a law approved last year by the Texas Senate that banned DEI programming at public universities. In Utah, House Bill 261, signed into law in January, prohibits DEI offices at public institutions from extending preferential treatment to students based on race or gender.
Indiana Considers Three-year Degrees
In March, Indiana enacted Senate Bill 8, which requires public institutions to review all their four-year degree programs in order to assess if they could be completed in three years. By July 1, 2025, each state university must offer at least one bachelor’s degree that can be completed in three years. Click here to learn more.
Texas Voters Respond to University Encampments
In May, ACTA released the results of a survey of Texas voters that measured their thoughts about recent protests at the University of Texas–Austin. The survey found that 69% of Texas voters supported the university president’s action of calling in state troopers to remove students who were violating campus rules, compared to just 23% who opposed it. In addition, 73% of respondents believe professional organizers of protests should be banned from campus.
Annual State Rankings
Check out ACTA’s annual state rankings of higher education performance. The rankings show policymakers and trustees how universities in their state stack up on administrative spending, graduation rates, speech code policies, and more. Click here to see how your state ranks among the rest of the nation.
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