Average Score The Average Score is the average of all Overall Scores from colleges in a state that were included in the College Free Speech Rankings.
58.0 Treanding Up
/ 100
Average Rank The Average Rank is the average of all Overall Ranks from colleges in a state that were included in the College Free Speech Rankings.
129 Treanding Up
/ 257
Average Grade The Grade is a letter based on the college's rounded Overall Score. Scores fall into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
F
Speech Controversies Controversies are campus incidents where a student, professor, or speaker faces backlash or pressure for speech that's protected by the First Amendment or academic freedom.
21
Comfort Expressing Ideas Comfort Expressing Ideas measures how comfortable students feel sharing their views on controversial topics in different campus settings. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
D
Disruptive Conduct Disruptive Conduct measures how acceptable students think it is to disrupt a campus speaker. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
C
Openness Openness measures how many controversial topics students feel they can openly discuss on campus. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
C-
Self-Censorship Self-Censorship measures how often students hold back their views on campus. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93–100) to F (below 60).
D-
Administrative Support Administrative Support measures how clearly students think their school supports free speech and how likely the administration is to defend a speaker's rights during a controversy. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
F
Political Tolerance Political Tolerance measures how willing students are to allow controversial speakers — on both the left and right — to speak on campus, even if they disagree with their views. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
F
Overview
Twelve Texas schools are ranked in the 2026 College Free Speech Rankings. The state’s average speech-climate grade is F, matching the national average. The University of Texas System Board of Regents has adopted both the pro-free speech Chicago Statement and a statement on institutional neutrality, applying to all UT campuses in the rankings.The University of Texas at El Paso ranks 42 overall and is the top-ranked school in the state. UTEP performs well on “Self-Censorship,” suggesting students are more willing to express their views openly.
Texas A&M University–College Station ranks 47 and is the only Texas campus with a “green light” rating in FIRE’s Spotlight database, meaning its written policies do not seriously threaten student expression. Texas A&M also performs well on “Political Tolerance” and “Disruptive Conduct,” indicating students are more open to controversial speakers and less likely to support shutting them down. Texas A&M has not adopted the pro-free speech Chicago Statement or a statement on institutional neutrality.
Rice University and the University of Texas at Dallas rank near the bottom and hold “red light” ratings, meaning their written policies clearly and substantially restrict protected expression. Reforming restrictive policies at private and lower-performing public schools would help strengthen these schools’ free-speech climates.
Highlights
41% of students say they have self-censored on campus at least once or twice a month.
71% of students say shouting down a speaker to prevent them from speaking on campus is acceptable, at least in rare cases.
35% of students say using violence to stop someone from speaking on campus is acceptable, at least in rare cases.
2.09:1
Across Texas, there are roughly 2.09 liberal students for every one conservative student.
Average score over time
Speech Controversies
Speech Controversies: When Free Expression Is Challenged
Explore notable incidents where free speech was tested on campuses across Texas. From speaker deplatformings to administrative actions, these events highlight the challenges — and consequences — of restricting expression.
Speech Controversies Controversies are campus incidents where a student, professor, or speaker faces backlash or pressure for speech that's protected by the First Amendment or academic freedom.
21
Scholars Under Fire Scholar Controversies are campus incidents where a professor or academic staff member faces backlash or punishment for speech protected by academic freedom or the First Amendment.
0
Students Under Fire Student Controversies are campus incidents where a student or student group faces punishment or pressure from the school for speech that's protected by the First Amendment.
15
Deplatformings Deplatformings are the number of incidents where a scheduled event or speaker is canceled or prevented from taking place.
6
Honor Roll Statements Honor Roll Statements are the number of public messages from a college or university defending free speech during a campus controversy. Schools that make these statements can earn bonus points on their Overall Score for standing up for free expression when it counts.
1
Attempted Disruptions Attempted Disruptions are the number of incidents where people on campus try to stop a scheduled event or speaker.
0
New in 2025 The number of controversies that have occurred since the previous launch of the College Free Speech Rankings.
15
Students Under Fire
| Year | School | Target | Controversy Explanation | Score Impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | University of North Texas | All LGBTQ+ Student Groups | A directive was sent by University of North Texas System Chancellor Michael Williams to the presidents of each campus ordering the pause of any drag performances on campus. Sigma Lambda Gammas was planning to host a drag show on April 11. | -1.0 |
| 2025 | University of North Texas | GLAD Queer Alliance | A directive was sent by University of North Texas System Chancellor Michael Williams to the presidents of each campus ordering the pause of any drag performances on campus. The GLAD Queer Alliance was planning to host a drag show on April 10. | -1.0 |
| 2025 | University of North Texas | Sigma Lambda Gammas | A directive was sent by University of North Texas System Chancellor Michael Williams to the presidents of each campus ordering the pause of any drag performances on campus. Sigma Lambda Gammas was planning to host a drag show on April 11. | -1.0 |
| 2025 | University of North Texas | Dania Bayan/Fatima Kubria | Texas Reps. (R) sent a letter to administrators calling for the removal of a Bayan's and Kubria's pro-Palestinian artwork from a campus exhibit. The letter called the artwork's framing of Middle Eastern geopolitics "not only inflammatory, but factually false with regard to the allegations of 'genocide.'" Bayan and another student artist (Fatima Kubra) voluntarily took down one piece from their exhibit. | +2.0 |
| 2025 | Texas A&M University | All LGBTQ+ Student Groups | Following President Trump's executive order recognizing only two sexes, the Texas A&M University System Board of Regents voted to ban drag shows on each of its 11 campuses out of concern that permitting these shows would violate the order. | -1.0 |
| 2025 | Texas A&M University | Queer Empowerment Council | The Texas A&M System Board of Regents voted to ban drag shows at each of the 11 system universities, which would prohibit the student-run Queer Empowerment Council from hosting its upcoming King/Queen of Draggiland event. Following President Trump's executive order recognizing only two sexes, the System Board of Regents voted on the issue out of concern that permitting drag shows would violate the order. With the help of FIRE the group sued, resulting in a judge blocking the ban and permitting their drag show to proceed as originally intended. | -1.0 |
| 2025 | The University of Texas at Arlington | LGBTQ+ Student Groups | One day after receiving a letter from Republican Tarrant County Judge Tim O'Hare calling for a system-wide ban of drag shows, chairman of the system's Board of Regents Kevin Eltife announced that "our public university facilities, supported by taxpayers, will not serve as venues for drag shows." Citing President Trump's Executive Order stating that "federal funds shall not be used to promote gender ideology," O'Hare's letter argued that "drag shows highlight men reducing the perception of women to stereotypes and body parts." | -1.0 |
| 2025 | The University of Texas at Austin | LGBTQ+ Student Groups | One day after receiving a letter from Republican Tarrant County Judge Tim O'Hare calling for a system-wide ban of drag shows, chairman of the system's Board of Regents Kevin Eltife announced that "our public university facilities, supported by taxpayers, will not serve as venues for drag shows." Citing President Trump's Executive Order stating that "federal funds shall not be used to promote gender ideology," O'Hare's letter argued that "drag shows highlight men reducing the perception of women to stereotypes and body parts." | -1.0 |
| 2025 | The University of Texas at Dallas | LGBTQ+ Student Groups | One day after receiving a letter from Republican Tarrant County Judge Tim O'Hare calling for a system-wide ban of drag shows, chairman of the system's Board of Regents Kevin Eltife announced that "our public university facilities, supported by taxpayers, will not serve as venues for drag shows." Citing President Trump's Executive Order stating that "federal funds shall not be used to promote gender ideology," O'Hare's letter argued that "drag shows highlight men reducing the perception of women to stereotypes and body parts." | -1.0 |
| 2025 | The University of Texas at El Paso | LGBTQ+ Student Groups | One day after receiving a letter from Republican Tarrant County Judge Tim O'Hare calling for a system-wide ban of drag shows, chairman of the system's Board of Regents Kevin Eltife announced that "our public university facilities, supported by taxpayers, will not serve as venues for drag shows." Citing President Trump's Executive Order stating that "federal funds shall not be used to promote gender ideology," O'Hare's letter argued that "drag shows highlight men reducing the perception of women to stereotypes and body parts." | -1.0 |
| 2025 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | LGBTQ+ Student Groups | One day after receiving a letter from Republican Tarrant County Judge Tim O'Hare calling for a system-wide ban of drag shows, chairman of the system's Board of Regents Kevin Eltife announced that "our public university facilities, supported by taxpayers, will not serve as venues for drag shows." Citing President Trump's Executive Order stating that "federal funds shall not be used to promote gender ideology," O'Hare's letter argued that "drag shows highlight men reducing the perception of women to stereotypes and body parts." | -1.0 |
| 2024 | The University of Texas at Austin | Ammer Qaddumi | Qaddumi was arrested during an April 24 pro-Palestine protest but had charges dropped. Despite faculty council ruling that the protest did not violate university rules, administrators wanted to hand out a three semester suspension. A student board ruled that Qaddumi had failed to comply with university rules but did not incite illegal conduct, and disagreed with the recommended suspension. Ultimately, however, an appellate officer ruled in the administration's favor, retroactively implementing the suspension. Qaddumi filed a lawsuit against the university, claiming the disciplinary action was unlawful. | -1.0 |
| 2024 | The University of Texas at Austin | Palestine Solidarity Committee | Palestine Solidarity Committee planned an outdoor demonstration on campus to call for the university to divest from groups with ties to Israel. The day before the scheduled protest, administrators sent the group a letter describing the group has having "declared intent to violate our policies and rules, and disrupt our campus operations," and told them they were not allowed to hold the event. When students assembled anyways, police intervened and arrested dozens of protesters "at the request of the University and at the direction of Texas Governor Greg Abbott." The group would go on to be suspended. | -1.0 |
| 2024 | The University of Texas at Dallas | Gregorio Olivares Gutierrez | Olivares Gutierrez is the Editor-in-Chief of the campus newspaper, The Mercury. The paper claims that in retaliation for not allowing the school's Director of Student Media to attend their private meetings over the summer, that same administrator prohibited them from attending future student journalism conferences and called a vote to fire Olivares Gutierrez for alleged bylaw violations. A committee of faculty, students and administrators ultimately did vote to remove him, and the paper demanded that the media operating board's bylaws be amended to prevent staff from being fired, that he be reinstated and that the position in the future become an elected position. Should their demands not be met, the paper says they will break away to form an independent outlet. | -1.0 |
| 2024 | The University of Texas at Dallas | The Mercury | Administrators fired all student staffers of The Mercury after the paper went on strike in response to the removal of its editor-and-chief. Following The Mercury's summer coverage of administrative handling of pro-Palestine student protests, the paper experienced months of contentious relations with administrators, including being prohibited from attending journalism conferences in alleged retaliation for denying the Director of Student Media access to summer meetings, as well as the outing of the paper's editor-in-chief in September. In response to this, the remaining ten members of the paper released a public statement announcing a strike until the editor-in-chief be reinstated. Several weeks later, student affairs fired all ten members, leading the students to start their own independent paper called the Retrograde. | -2.0 |
Deplatformings
| Year | School | Target | Controversy Explanation | Score Impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | University of North Texas | Perceptions: Observations & Reflections of the Western Muslim | Multiple state representatives wrote the university demanding the removal of "Perceptions: Observations & Reflections of the Western Muslim," an art exhibit, that included a piece featuring Hebrew text stating, "The murder of the people = genocide." Some faculty members also criticized the artwork as "antisemitic." In response to the backlash, the artists chose to remove the contentious piece two days before the exhibit's scheduled conclusion. The rest of the exhibit remained on display until its planned end date. | -1.0 |
| 2025 | Texas A&M University | Draggieland | The university system's Board of Regents unanimously voted to ban drag shows across its 11 campuses, citing concerns that such performances are "inconsistent with the System's mission and core values," and referencing a recent preisdential executive order prohibiting federal funding for the promotion of "gender ideology." This decision led to the cancellation of "Draggieland," an annual drag event scheduled on the university's flagship campus. | -3.0 |
| 2025 | Texas A&M University | No Other Land | University administrators canceled a scheduled on-campus screening of the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land “so [the event] could be held in conjunction with other academic programs that would add value.” The film, created by an Israeli-Palestinian collective, documents the displacement of Palestinian communities in the West Bank. In response to the cancellation, the film was screened off-campus | -3.0 |
| 2025 | The University of Texas at Dallas | Dominic Coletti | University administrators canceled Coletti's talk, titled "Why You Should Care About Free Speech on Campus," less than 24 hours before it was set to begin. Coletti, a FIRE staff attormey, had been invited by the Young Americans for Liberty (YAL). The cancellation was triggered when a reporter from the student newspaper, The Mercury, contacted university administrators with questions about whether the event complied with school policies. This prompted administrators to investigate and ultimately revoke the student group’s room reservation. The university cited a rule prohibiting outside organizations from reserving campus space or organizing events through student groups, asserting that FIRE—not YAL—had arranged the event. FIRE contested the university’s justification, arguing that the policy was vaguely defined and selectively enforced, especially since the university had allowed other student groups to host events co-sponsored by external organizations. | -3.0 |
| 2024 | University of Houston | Shahzia Sikander | Sikander, an artist, was scheduled to speak at the opening of an exhibit diplsaying two pieces of her artwork (Witness and Reckoning) at the univerisity. Multiple off-campus activists groups, TFP Student Action and Texas Right to Life, started petitions demanding the exhibits cancelation. The university canceled the opening ceremonies, including Sikander's talk, after these petitions garnered national attention and Texas Right to Life organized an on-campus protest. Witness remains on display. Reckoning, an animated shirt film, was not installed at the time the exhibit opened and it is unclear if or when it will be shown. | -2.0 |
| 2023 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | Alice Rothchild/Deborah Harrington/Hadeel El Masri/Harry Gunkel | A group of medical students worked with the Center for Medical Humanities and Ethics on campus to schedule a serioes of discussions on "Health Equity in Palestine." The first discussion, while initially postponed, was well attended, but a week before the second discussion a faculty member at the Center for Medical Humanities and Ethics informed the medical students that the center was ending its sponsorship of the discussions. The medical students reached out to the university administration to see if the event could be held without the center's sponsorship but they received no reply and the remaining two discussions were canceled. Rothchild, Harrignton and El Masro were scheduled to participate in the second discussion; Gunkel was scheduled to participate in the last one. | -1.0 |
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