College of Liberal Arts Dean Dr. Jim Davis informed department chairs of the changes in a 30-minute meeting last week. The restructure is expected to be complete by September 2027.
Under the plan, the departments of African and African Diaspora Studies; American Studies; Mexican American and Latina/o Studies; and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies will be merged into a new Department of Social and Cultural Analysis. Separately, the departments of French and Italian Studies; Germanic Studies; and Slavic and Eurasian Studies will be folded into a new Department of European and Eurasian Studies. The university has also launched a curriculum review to determine which majors and minors will continue to be offered under the consolidated departments.
More than 800 students are currently pursuing majors, minors and graduate degrees across the seven departments, according to Save UT, a faculty group opposing the merger. The full impact on students' paths to degree completion remains unclear, though UT President Jim Davis said enrolled students can continue pursuing their degree programs during the transition.
"Of course, students already enrolled in the departments being consolidated can continue to pursue their degree programs within the new departments while the curriculum review and departmental change is underway," Davis said in a notice to students, faculty and staff.
Faculty pushed back sharply. In a written statement, faculty said "these changes have been rushed through with minimal weigh-in from faculty and no input at all from staff or students."
Davis described the reorganization as a response to a review that found "some significant inconsistencies and fragmentation across the college's departments," but offered few other specifics. Staff present at the meeting said they were not given details on how the consolidation would affect research centers, institutes or staffing.
The announcement did not come entirely without warning. Faculty, staff and students had been bracing for potential changes for months. In October, the UT System began auditing courses related to gender studies, and UT Austin created an Advisory Committee on Administrative Structure to explore possible changes to the liberal arts college's organizational structure. Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Dr. Daniel Brink had acknowledged at the time the potential for "loss of autonomy for small units" but provided no further details.
The restructure arrives as Texas universities have faced a wave of politically driven changes to how they handle race, gender and sexuality in academics. Last month, Texas A&M University eliminated its women and gender studies degree program. The Texas Tech University System banned professors from promoting race or sex-based "prejudice" or mentioning the existence of more than two genders. The University of Houston replaced its women and gender resource center with a parent and family office at the start of the spring semester. Federal officials have also urged UT Austin and several other universities to sign a "compact" promising preferential grant access in exchange for committing to define sex based on reproductive function and overhauling or eliminating academic departments deemed hostile to conservative ideas.
There is no state or federal law explicitly prohibiting instruction on race, gender or sexual orientation at universities. Senate Bill 17, passed in 2023, banned diversity, equity and inclusion offices but explicitly exempted classroom teaching and scholarly research. Senate Bill 37, passed in 2025, transferred authority over curricula from faculty to governor-appointed regents; though early drafts sought to restrict what could be taught, that language was dropped before final passage.
