Professor Fired For Punishing Student Who Objected To Gender Ideology In Children’s Lit Class
'Isn’t about academic freedom'
'Fish rots from the head': Student claims some scalps after exposing trans propaganda at Texas A&M — but the fight's not over
A Texas A&M student whistleblower recently provided Republican state Rep. Brian Harrison with video evidence that she was thrown out of a children's literature class for objecting to a woke instructor's propagation of perverse gender ideology and DEI.
The whistleblower provided Harrison not only with offending course materials and audio from her disheartening conversation about the propagandist with Texas A&M President Gen. Mark Welsh but with emails from the English department head, who spoke of an apparent deal to keep the student out of the class.
Harrison, certain the controversy over the taxpayer-funded propaganda would have otherwise been swept under the rug, brought the matter to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott's attention as well as to the attention of the Trump administration, demanding immediate action.
Things have since gone sideways for the indoctrinator central to the story as well as for her enablers.
While two people have already been removed from their positions, this controversy is far from settled.
In addition to the university's Board of Regents asking Texas A&M University System Chancellor Glenn Hegar to "audit every course and ensure full compliance with all applicable laws," which might flush out more propagandists, there are now calls for Welsh's removal.
"America and Texans can now see how dishonest and how liberal the leadership of this once great university is," Harrison said. "We need a lot of people to be fired, and we need a lot of budgets to be cut so that Texas can lead the nation once again."
How it started
Senior lecturer Melissa McCoul, whose stated areas of research include "gender studies," can be heard discussing "gender and sexuality" at the outset of the video captured by the student whistleblower.
A slide titled "Gender Unicorn" can be seen projected at the front of class. This Trans Student Educational Resources graphic suggests that so-called gender identity and gender expression are distinct from sex assigned at birth and that there are sexes besides male, female, and intersex.
'You are under a misconception that what I am saying is illegal.'
According to TSER, this graphic was created as an alternative to "The Genderbread Person" to better reflect "genders outside of the western gender binary."
Harrison obtained other instructional materials from the children's literature course that indicate the gender unicorn was by no means the most provocative piece of gender agitprop pushed in the class.
For instance, one slide emphasized that it's not "too 'adult'" to talk to young children about "queerness" and complained that "heteronormativity leads to compulsory heterosexuality." There were also DEI and critical race theory materials in the class.
— (@)
When McCoul proceeded to the next slide, which was titled "TRANS REP," the student whistleblower spoke up: "I'm not entirely sure this is legal to be teaching because according to our president, there's only two genders, and he said that he would be freezing agencies funding programs that promote gender ideology."
"This also very much goes against, not only myself, but a lot of people's religious beliefs," the student continued. "And so I am not going to participate in this because it's not legal, and I don't want to promote something that is against our president's laws as well as against my religious beliefs."
McCoul said in response, "You are under a misconception that what I am saying is illegal."
RELATED: It's time to address America's transgender ideology problem
When the student pushed back, volunteering to read President Donald Trump's executive order concerning the government's recognition of two sexes, male and female, the lecturer said, "You do have the right to leave. What we are doing is not illegal, and if you would like to make the claim that it is, you need to talk to the department head."
McCoul further expressed doubt that the student would be "effective in stopping me from teaching things that are biologically true because I do have the legal and ethical authority, ... and it's time for you to leave."
— (@)
"It took tremendous courage for a relatively young lady to stand up to an authority figure alone as a sole voice in that class — to somebody who had the potential to fail her, to harm her professionally," Harrison told Blaze News. "And she had the courage not just to stand up to the professor but to take her concerns all the way to the president of the university and to have the foresight to record him."
'I know for a fact that Texas A&M knew about this for a long time.'
An audio recording obtained by Harrison allegedly captures Welsh, Barack Obama's chief of staff of the U.S. Air Force, shutting down the possibility of McCoul's termination and acknowledging that other students took issue with McCoul's instruction.
"You're trying to pick a fight here. What do you want?" Welsh appears to say in the recording.
"I'm not trying to pick a fight," the student whistleblower responds. "No, sir, I'm not."
After the student confirms that she is seeking McCoul's ouster, Welsh appears to say, "Okay, well, that's not happening."
Blaze News has reached out to Welsh for comment.
— (@)
Harrison, who also obtained audio of the university president apparently indicating that he supports the development of new LGBT courses, said that Welsh's response was "condescending."
"I know for a fact that Texas A&M knew about this for a long time, that they covered it up, and then, instead of punishing the professor and the department head and the president, the leadership of Texas A&M concocted what was basically a cover-up scheme," Harrison said. "They offered the student a deal to keep her quiet."
Screenshots of emails between the head of the English department, Emily Johansen, and the student, show that Johansen: flagged the student's "disruptive behavior"; referenced McCoul's request that the student "no longer attend class sessions for the rest of the semester"; suggested the student's in-class recordings were unacceptable; and alluded to a deal whereby the student could keep her grade but no longer attend the class.
"They tried to silence her, and they tried to keep the public from ever seeing that video," Harrison said.
On Sunday, the conservative representative asked Gov. Abbott to take action and asked for the Departments of Education and Health and Human Services to "take any appropriate action(s) to ensure that Texas universities receiving federal funds are complying with President Trump’s Executive Orders."
Blaze News has reached out to McCoul, Johansen, the HHS, the Education Department, and Vickie Spillers, the executive director of the Texas A&M Board of Regents, for comment. Abbott's office referred Blaze News to his tweets on X regarding the topic.
How it's going
Hours after Harrison went scorched-earth on Texas A&M, Welsh announced that he had directed the provost to immediately remove the College of Arts and Sciences dean and the English department head from their administrative positions.
"Good," Gov. Abbott responded. "Now, fire the professor who acted contrary to Texas law."
The following day, Welsh claimed in an update that after it became clear that the children's literature course "contained content that did not align with any reasonable expectation of standard curriculum for the course, ... college and department leadership worked with students to offer alternative opportunities for students to complete the course, and made changes to ensure this course content does not continue in future semesters."
'The president of the university must be fired.'
According to Welsh, he only learned on Monday that "the college continued to teach content that was inconsistent with the published course description for another course this fall."
Welsh further indicated in the update that Texas A&M "abides by state and federal law" and that he had both fired the professor and tasked department heads with conducting an audit of course offerings to ensure they align with the course descriptions.
RELATED: How gay ‘marriage’ made today’s gender madness possible
The university system's board of regents also announced it had asked Texas A&M Chancellor Glenn Hegar to "audit every course and ensure full compliance with all applicable laws."
Alvin Lui, president of the parental rights advocacy group Courage Is a Habit, cast doubt on the value of these audits — audits Harrison deemed "pathetic."
"It doesn't matter what the curriculum says when you have these teachers that are trained at woke teacher colleges, and all teacher colleges are woke," Lui said. "They teach everything through the lens of a Marxist. They teach everything through the lens of a critical race theorist or a queer theorist. So it doesn't matter what the syllabus says. It doesn't matter what the course catalog says."
Not enough
When asked whether the terminations of the two administrators and the lecturer were sufficient, Harrison told Blaze News, "Absolutely not. Not even close. A fish rots from the head."
"I'm a proud member of the fighting Texas Aggie class of 2004, and it's obvious now that I care more about Texas A&M than the leadership of Texas A&M does," the Republican state representative continued. "We have a code of honor: Aggies do not lie, cheat, or steal, or tolerate those who do, and if the president of Texas A&M cannot abide by that code of conduct himself, that's more than sufficient grounds to fire him."
"This is a taxpayer-funded employee of the state of Texas," Harrison continued. "The people of the state of Texas are being taxed out of their homes, and they damn well don't want their money weaponized against them, their children, and their values to promote leftist indoctrination. The president of the university must be fired."
'Don't believe your child is safe from the woke mind virus spreading on college campuses just because they're in a state like Texas.'
Harrison suggested further that Texas A&M is not the only university in the state infected by DEI and gender ideology.
"Almost every single public university has an entire — not just a class or two — an entire undergraduate minor program in LGBTQ transgender studies. People think we're the bastion of bold Republican leadership. That's a myth," Harrison said. "The Texas Republican leadership in this state is weak, establishment, liberal, progressive."
When asked about next steps, Harrison referred Blaze News to his letter to Abbott where he asked the governor to direct his politically appointed regents at all of Texas' public universities to immediately "take all necessary action" to purge all remaining DEI and LGBT propaganda instruction and activities. In the letter, he also asked Abbott to call back the legislature for a special session to pass a total ban on such indoctrination within any state agency.
Corey DeAngelis, a senior fellow at the American Culture Project and a visiting fellow at the American Institute for Economic Research, told Blaze News, "DEI ideology needs to DIE. Gender ideology must be rooted out of all academic institutions if we want our country to return to sanity. The university radicals want to continue pushing our society off the rails, but we can save America by letting sane people take the wheel."
"This incident proves red states are not immune from woke ideology. Don't believe your child is safe from the woke mind virus spreading on college campuses just because they're in a state like Texas," DeAngelis continued. "The socialists infiltrate academia to brainwash your kids and advance their agenda. We must all be vigilant and fight back against the lunacy at our universities," DeAngelis added.
Lui noted that Americans are mistaken in thinking that the president's executive orders and laws alone will neutralize leftist indoctrination efforts. Instead, Lui suggested that Americans and American institutions must take proactive steps as the student whistleblower had in this case, using policy and laws as tools on the offensive.
Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!Buc-ee's goes to Texas A&M — thanks to iconic brand's Aggie founder
Beloved Texas brand Buc-ee's announced a partnership with one of the most historic universities in the country, and with it came two more big reveals.
Buc-ee's is an iconic country store and gas station started in 1982 in East Texas, and it has exploded in popularity in the digital age. The store has become a tourism hot spot known for its beaver mascot and pristine customer experience.
At the same time, the store's food and merchandise has never been available outside of its travel centers, until now.
'It's incredibly special to bring Buc-ee's to the heart of the campus.'
In a one-of-a-kind announcement, Buc-ee's has partnered with Texas A&M University to bring its brand to not one, but three locations on the school's main campus in College Station, Texas.
The locations will see the Buc-ee's Beaver Nuggets, beef jerky, and beaver-branded merchandise in the campus commons and dining centers.
Consumers may be wondering why the brand has connected solely with this university, especially with such a large splash, but they should look no further than Buc-ee's founder, Arch "Beaver" Aplin III, who has long had ties with the institution.
RELATED: Fear the beaver: How a gas station became a cult (and why you should consider joining)
"As an Aggie, it's incredibly special to bring Buc-ee's to the heart of the campus," Aplin said, according to a Texas A&M press release.
The founder and CEO, who graduated from the school in 1980, said he was thrilled to share a piece of his brand with the student body on a daily basis.
In 2022, Aplin gave Texas A&M a whopping $50 million to start a hospitality entrepreneurship program.
"When Beaver Aplin does something, it's never halfway!" Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp said at the time.
This spawned the Aplin Center, which hosts programs in hospitality, retail studies, and food product development. The facility also has development labs and food tasting centers to be used in partnership with other industries.
RELATED: The A&W Drive-In in Cortland, New York, isn't just a lunch spot — it's a time machine
Buc-ee's has become a noted piece of Americana over the years, likely because of its focus on customer service. Many may not be aware that every location has a staff member dedicated to cleaning the bathroom continuously at all times.
The company boasts having the "cleanest restrooms in America" and even won an award for the claim in 2012.
Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!
Is this Texas university SPYING on ICE?
Texas A&M is facing backlash after an internal email by Alan Sams, the university provost and executive vice president, asked recipients to contact the university police if they saw ICE on their campus.
The email's subject line was “Correcting Misinformation Regarding Immigration Enforcement Activity.”
“I’m reaching out today to address concerns related to immigration enforcement and the university that are circulating among faculty, staff, and our graduate student community. As stewards of our employee and student data, the university cannot share personal information about individual students or employees except as permitted by law, such as directory information,” Sams wrote.
“Your safety, well-being, and privacy are of the utmost importance. We take great care with personal issues or concerns raised by our faculty, staff, and students, and we investigate situations fully and confidentially,” he added.
“Oh, read between the lines there guys,” BlazeTV host Sara Gonzales says on “Come and Take It.” “Confidentially. Wink wink, nudge nudge. We won't tell ICE. Don’t worry, your secret is safe with us.”
“And then, of course, they go on to passive-aggressively scold people who may be, I don’t know, sharing that there are people there who are illegal,” she adds.
“Please keep in mind that sharing partial or inaccurate information about individual situations can inhibit investigations and can be damaging to the individual involved. While we may not be able to comment on specific situations due to student or employee confidentiality, we will always take care to try to stem the spread of incomplete or inaccurate information, and we hope you will, too,” the email continued.
Sams went on to explain that “the university does not proactively share information with immigration authorities,” before adding, “if you are ever concerned about your safety, see something suspicious or encounter a federal law enforcement officer on campus, we ask that you immediately contact the university police department.”
“In other words,” Gonzales says, “we don’t intend to cooperate with ICE. If you’re an illegal here, your secret is safe with us until there is literally nothing else we can do about it because we really, really love illegals here at Texas A&M more than American citizens.”
Want more from Sara Gonzales?
To enjoy more of Sara's no-holds-barred take to news and culture, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.
‘Free Speech’ Group Forces Taxpayer-Funded Texas University To Feature Trans Sex Shows
A judge is forcing Texas A&M University to host explicit drag shows on campus after the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression sued.Roland Martin CRIES racism, EMBARRASSES black people
Journalist Roland Martin is a Democrat, which is why it’s no surprise that he’s crying racism over a simple question he was asked recently.
“White people really crack me up,” Martin said in a video he posted to social media. “So y’all see what I got on,” he added, referring to the Texas A&M jersey he was wearing.
“I color-code. So everything in my bag is Texas A&M,” he continued. “So I’m walking, white dude says, ‘You a fan or did you play?’ I knew exactly what he was talking about. I said, ‘Excuse me?’”
“All I said was ‘No, I’m a graduate,’ and I walked off. That’s the s**t black people have to deal with,” he added.
Jason Whitlock of “Fearless” is amused, to say the least.
“How did he survive?” Whitlock mocks.
“What a harrowing experience.”
“He went to a PWI, and someone asked him whether he was a fan or a former player. Nobody knows the trouble Roland has seen. We shall overcome,” he continues.
“Roland’s a cornball,” Shemeka Michelle chimes in. “For him to even feel like this is some sort of microaggression and this is what you have to deal with with white people. There are times when I may be going to a sports bar to watch a Carolina or Duke game. I may be in Carolina gear; I would not be offended if someone asked me, ‘Did you play or are you a fan?’”
However, Whitlock isn’t so sure this isn’t all a part of some grand scheme for clicks.
“There is a chance that Roland knows exactly what he’s doing. It’s like, ‘Hey, I’m going to put out this little fake story, and I’m going to trigger people like Jason Whitlock and Shemeka Michelle and I’m going to trend all over social media,’” he speculates.
“Some attention is better than no attention,” he adds.
Want more from Jason Whitlock?
To enjoy more fearless conversations at the crossroads of culture, faith, sports, and comedy with Jason Whitlock, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.
Greg Abbott throws down threat over Texas A&M trip to event that excludes whites, Asians. Soon school has change of heart.
Texas A&M University canceled a trip to a conference that excludes whites and Asians after Republican Texas Gov. Abbott threatened the job of the school's president, Fox News reported.
Conservative investigative writer Christopher Rufo posted Monday on X that "Texas A&M is sponsoring a trip to a DEI conference that prohibits whites and Asians from attending. The university falsely claims that this use of taxpayer funds does not violate the state's DEI ban. @TAMU is supporting racial segregation and breaking the law."
'I don’t believe we fully considered the spirit of our state law in making the initial decision to participate.'
In his post, Rufo included images of emails relating to registering for the PhD Project's Annual Conference, which takes place in Chicago in March. Rufo also included an image of registration requirements, which state that the conference is "designed for historically underrepresented individuals considering business doctoral studies" — and that "to be eligible for the annual conference, you must identify as Black/African American, Latinx/Hispanic American or Native American/Canadian Indigenous."
Abbott reacted strongly on X to Texas A&M's planned sponsorship of the trip north: "Hell, no. It’s against Texas law and violates the U.S. Constitution. It will be fixed immediately, or the president will soon be gone."
The university posted the following on X a few hours after Abbott's reaction:
— (@)
Soon university President Mark A. Welsh III told Fox News in a statement that he acknowledges the event is "not in line" with state law and that the trip is being canceled.
"While the proper process for reviewing and approving attendance at such events was followed, I don’t believe we fully considered the spirit of our state law in making the initial decision to participate," the statement read, according to the cable news network. "This particular conference’s limitations on the acceptable race of attendees is not in line with the intent of SB-17, and, as a result, we will not be sending anyone to participate in this conference."
Fox News said the statement was sent to staff and faculty at the university's Mays Business School. The cable news network added that it reached out to Abbott's office for comment.
Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!
Texas Universities Skirt New Law Aimed At Dissolving Racist ‘Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion’ On Campuses
Higher education can’t simply be reformed with words on paper. It must be defunded.Today's top stories
www.theblaze.com