University of Texas to establish School of Civic Leadership at UT-Austin

The University of Texas at Austin is set to establish a new School of Civic Leadership to teach students about "the values and principles of a free society" after the UT System Board of Regents approved the school Thursday.

Once formed, the school will provide UT “students with foundational knowledge and critical thinking skills steeped in the Western tradition and American constitutional history." The timeline to officially form the school at UT is undetermined.

According to the motion the board approved, the school will be led by a dean who reports to UT provost Sharon Wood, with a goal to have the new dean in place by Nov. 30. The dean will be expected to appoint a board of advisors to counsel the dean.

“We believe that investment in this endeavor is essential for leading American universities, and we hope UT-Austin will be a model for the best way to provide for scholarship and teaching that will prepare leaders and citizens for the future,” board chairman Kevin Eltife said during the meeting.

Eltife was not immediately available for an interview after the meeting.

The school is expected to house UT’s Civitas Institute, and it may also house the Clements Center for National Security, pending approval from UT President Jay Hartzell and consultation with the advisory board. The institute and center could both merge “some or all of their existing programs and activities” into the new school, according to the motion.

The Civitas Institute, which was originally known as the Liberty Institute, has faced controversy after Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and private donors originally championed it as a way to bring "intellectual diversity" and instruction on limited government and free markets to the university, which they claim is overrun by liberal educators.

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Students and faculty had criticized an alleged lack of transparency behind the center’s development and the Legislature's perceived politicization of the university. The center has since appointed a director and now houses several faculty fellows who teach courses on topics such as experimental economics, natural law theory and the U.S Constitution.

The new school plans to equip students to be the “next generation of leadership” for Texas and the U.S. and prepare students for careers in public service and national security.

“The school will encompass a unique hybrid of classical and professional education,” the motion said. “It will engage in a comprehensive, interdisciplinary program of research, teaching, training and equipping students in the knowledge and aptitudes necessary to lead a free society.”

Hartzell said in a statement that the new school will "promote excellence in teaching and research, attract and recruit the best scholars and students, and create transformational opportunities for our students."

He said he would work with University leaders, faculty members, staff and students to "bring this new school to life."

"As the state’s flagship public university, UT-Austin has a longstanding tradition and unique responsibility to equip and train civic leaders for our state and nation, and this new school reflects an expanded commitment for the next generation of leadership," Hartzell said. "This interdisciplinary school will both develop new programs and foster collaboration across campus to elevate this important mission, enabling UT to advance our leadership position in Texas and across the country."

It will follow the university's governance procedures for new schools and it will be able to hire new tenure and tenure-track faculty through existing university policies and procedures. It also will also develop curricula and offer undergraduate and graduate degrees in relevant areas of study.

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The board expects UT’s president and new dean to “work expeditiously” to secure funding, including philanthropic support, to allocate the budget for the school and hire a staff sufficient to “deliver world class education and research."

The regents expect the school to budget for and fill the positions of at least 20 new tenure and tenure-track faculty within the school's first three years and funding for additional faculty could be granted as needed “to fulfill the teaching and research mission” of the school, according to the motion.

Conroe Republican state Sen. Brandon Creighton, chair of the Senate Subcommittee on Higher Education, has filed Senate Bill 2030, which would establish the Civitas School of Civic and International Leadership. The bill — which is no longer needed for the school to be established after the UT System vote — has not yet received a hearing in the Senate Higher Education Subcommittee.

"The Civitas Institute will be a leader in research, education and policy based on free markets and individual liberty," Creighton said in a statement after the vote. "I applaud Chairman Eltife and the Board of Regents for their support, which will provide the organizational structure to hire faculty and staff."

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: University of Texas to establish School of Civic Leadership in Austin