Southwest
Texas 'free speech' university's admissions process shuns the DEI blueprint: 'Interested in the mind'
At this Texas university, getting accepted is “mind” over matter.
The University of Austin (UATX) – founded on free speech principles to push back against “woke” ideology – is shunning diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies for what some call MEI – merit, excellence and intelligence, and it’s just another way the school is shaking up higher education.
“We don’t take any of that into consideration in admissions,” Pano Kanelos, president of the university, told CBS News of race, ethnicity and gender. “The primary thing that we’re interested in is the mind.”
Merit, excellence and intelligence (MEI) centers on qualifications and abilities, particularly emphasizing the “capacity to think deeply,” according to Kanelos.
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The University of Austin offers a free speech alternative to more progressive universities. (iStock, The University of Austin)
It’s an idea that pushes back on increasingly controversial DEI policies that prioritize specific ethnicities, racial backgrounds or other demographics in admissions and hiring processes. Once a staple among many companies and institutions of higher education, the concept appears to be losing steam as some dial back its presence.
The University of Florida, for instance, eliminated all of its DEI positions earlier this year to comply with state law. Universities in Alabama, including the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, also dissolved their DEI offices to comply with state law.
Companies are also backtracking from DEI, including retail giant Walmart, who hopped onboard the trend this week after companies like Ford, John Deere, Toyota and others did the same.
Critics of DEI suggest such policies prioritize appearance and basic qualities over credentials or experience. MEI critics have a different concern, however. “60 Minutes” correspondent Jon Wertheim remarked that UATX’s student body appeared to not be “particularly diverse” as he discussed the admissions policy with some school founders.
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Students at The University of Austin are admitted on a merit basis, according to school founders. (iStock)
Diversity looks different at UATX, its founders say.
“We are putting resources into finding talent of an intellectual variety. And if you’re interested in diversity, I recommend you look at the social backgrounds of our students, at the family circumstances of our students,” British-American historian Niall Ferguson, another member of the university’s founding group, responded.
Another of its founders is Bari Weiss, the former New York Times opinion journalist who now runs the independent site The Free Press, which values free speech and debate.
The admissions process – and the school itself – offer a more conservative alternative to the overwhelmingly left-leaning elite universities like Harvard, Yale, Columbia and their public rivals, some of which, like universities in Florida and Alabama, have downsized or entirely dissolved their DEI departments as seasons change.
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DEI policies seek to end racial and other inequities by prioritizing select groups for acceptance. (iStock)
Currently, UATX relies on donor generosity to thrive, but the assumption that all donors are conservative business moguls is flawed. In fact, the free speech policy resonates with liberal donor Nadine Strossen, according to the article.
She insists that “punishing expression” does more harm than good. As she replied to a question about “hateful speech” at UATX, she replied: “My concern is to try to eliminate the underlying discriminatory attitudes. You don’t do that by punishing expression. You do that through education, through more speech, not less.”
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The family of Brianna Aguilera, the Texas A&M student who fell to her death from a high-rise apartment in November, is suing two organizations for allegedly overserving alcohol ahead of the 19-year-old’s death.
Attorney Tony Buzbee on Tuesday announced a $1 million wrongful death lawsuit was filed in Travis County against the Austin Blacks Rugby Club and the UT Economics and Business Association.
“It is illegal to serve minors any amount of alcohol in the State of Texas. It is reckless and irresponsible to grossly over-serve a group of minors at a University of Texas football tailgate to the point where those minors lose their physical faculties and ability to control themselves,” the lawsuit states.
Aguilera died when she fell from an Austin high-rise apartment following a Texas A&M vs. University of Texas football tailgate at around 1 a.m. Nov. 29, according to police.
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An image provided by the family of the young Texas A&M student, Brianna Aguilera, found dead in Austin over the weekend. (GoFundMe)
A police investigation later determined Aguilera died by suicide despite her family’s claims that she was killed.
Brianna Aguilera was found dead in an apartment hours after attending a tailgate party. (Facebook/Brie Aguilera)
According to the filing, the alleged “egregious over-serving of minors” led to Aguilera’s death. Witnesses described her behavior over several hours as “shifting from upbeat to disoriented and ultimately grossly intoxicated,” the suit says.
Brianna Aguilera holds a sign congratulating her on her acceptance to Texas A&M. (Instagram/brie.aguilera)
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Buzbee said the lawsuit is also intended to support the ongoing investigation into the events of that night by allowing the firm to seek phone and text records, documents and data and to compel witness testimony.
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The lawsuit requests a jury trial.
Fox News Digital’s Julia Bonavita contributed to this report.
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Nobody handles oil quite like Texas and a fresh supply of Venezuelan crude could soon be headed to the Lone Star State’s coast.
The first barrels of thick, tar-like crude could arrive as soon as next week at ports across Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi, where dense clusters of refineries are built and bred to process heavy oil.
The development follows President Donald Trump’s Tuesday evening announcement that Caracas will transfer up to 50 million barrels of oil to the U.S., worth about $2.8 billion at current market prices.
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Venezuelan children swimming near an oil tanker docked at a pier near the refinery of the state oil company PDVSA. (Jesus Vargas/picture alliance/Getty Images)
“The Gulf Coast concentrates most of our refining capacity, and those refineries were built or revamped over the years to process extra-heavy crude similar to what is produced in Venezuela,” explained Jaime Brito, executive director of refining and oil products at OPIS.
“From a market perspective, additional volumes of extra-heavy crude entering the U.S. refining system would be an extraordinarily positive development,” Brito said. “It would allow refiners to operate more efficiently, something they haven’t been able to do for years and could help keep gasoline and diesel prices at better levels because refiners would have access to cheaper crude and more optimal operations.”
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He added that tankers could arrive within five to six days if they leave Venezuelan waters on Thursday.
Because Gulf Coast refineries supply a large share of the nation’s fuel, shifts in how efficiently they operate can ultimately ripple through to prices paid by U.S. consumers.
Texas oil refineries are poised to benefit from additional crude oil supplies. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
The arrival of 15 to 25 oil tankers carrying up to 50 million barrels of crude is only a fraction of what Venezuela could ultimately supply.
With more than 300 billion barrels of proven reserves, it holds the world’s largest oil endowment — eclipsing long-standing energy heavyweights like Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Kuwait.
Despite its vast reserves, U.S. sanctions have effectively blocked most Venezuelan crude from reaching the U.S. Gulf Coast, leaving Chevron — operating under a special authorization — as the sole exporter of limited volumes.
US NOW IN CONTROL OF VENEZUELA’S OIL RESERVES, THE LARGEST IN THE WORLD
A Chevron Corp. flag flies on the drilling floor of a Nabors Industries Ltd. drill rig in the Permian Basin near Midland, Texas, on March 1, 2018. (Daniel Acker/Bloomberg/Getty Images)
That disruption has been felt most acutely in Texas, which anchors the nation’s refining hub and hosts several of the country’s largest heavy-crude refineries.
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A renewed flow of Venezuelan barrels could also intensify competition in the heavy-crude market, particularly between Venezuela and Canada, Brito said.
“You’re going to have fierce competition between Canada and Venezuela, which benefits American refiners and gives them more flexibility to potentially lower fuel prices,” he said, adding that he was speaking strictly from an oil-market perspective.
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A security guard was fatally shot outside a Houston restaurant Wednesday evening after a confrontation with another man, authorities said.
The shooting happened around 6:15 p.m. outside Connie’s Seafood Market Restaurant, the Houston Police Department said.
Police told reporters that the security guard, who was working for the restaurant, was standing in the parking lot when a fight broke out between him and another man, FOX26 Houston reported.
Police said the security guard was shot at least once. He was rushed to a hospital where he later died.
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A security guard was fatally shot outside a Houston restaurant Wednesday evening after a confrontation with another man, authorities said. (Houston Police Department)
Authorities did not immediately release the name of the victim.
The suspect was last seen running away from the parking lot after the shooting.
The security guard was working for the restaurant at the time of the shooting. (Google Maps)
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No details about the suspect or the circumstances that led to the altercation have been released as of Thursday morning.
Houston police were reviewing surveillance footage as they search for the shooting suspect. (Mayra Beltran/Houston Chronicle, File)
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Officials said investigators were reviewing surveillance footage and speaking with witnesses to get a description of the suspect.
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