Texas A&M University President Mark Welsh announced on Monday that two individuals were removed from their positions following a viral video in which a student and professor conflicted over the classroom discussion of gender identity.
The video captured a woman in a children’s literature class contesting the professor’s inclusion of gender identity topics, claiming it was illegal due to President Trump’s executive orders against “gender ideology.”
The professor fired back, stating it was not illegal and eventually asking the student to leave the classroom.
The video garnered national attention, with calls for investigations from the state and federal government.
In response to the incident, Welsh announced that the dean and department head responsible for that course would be removed from their roles. It remains uncertain if they will continue to work in other capacities within the university.
“This afternoon, I was informed that key leaders in the College of Arts and Sciences had approved plans to teach course content that did not match the published course description,” Welsh stated.
“Our students rely on the published information in the course catalog to make important academic decisions. If we permit discrepancies between advertised and taught content, we fail our students. When it comes to academic offerings, we must maintain our commitment to them and the state of Texas,” he continued.
The video does not show the face of the student or professor, and it is not clear when the argument occurred.
According to The Texas Tribune, this decision marks a shift in direction after another video depicted a student meeting with the president, during which Welsh stated he would not dismiss the teacher.
Harmeet K. Dhillon, assistant attorney general for Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, said on the social media platform X the agency would look into the incident.
