School Spotlight
Texas State University – San Marcos
Speech Code Rating
Texas State University System Sexual Misconduct Policy and Procedures
Speech Code Rating: Yellow
Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: September 20, 2020Sexual harassment means unwelcome, sex-based verbal or physical conduct that: … in the education context, is sufficiently severe, persistent, or pervasive that the conduct interferes with a student’s ability to participate in or benefit from educational programs or activities at a postsecondary educatio... Read MoreUPPS No. 04.01.07: Appropriate Use of Information Resources
Speech Code Rating: Yellow
Speech Code Category: Internet Usage Policies
Last updated: September 20, 2020The following activities exemplify inappropriate use of the university’s information resources. These and similar activities are strictly prohibited for all users: … k. using university information resources in a manner that violates other university policies, such as racial, ethnic, religious, sexual, or othe... Read MoreStudent Handbook: Rules and Policies- Code of Student Conduct
Speech Code Rating: Yellow
Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: September 20, 2020Specific examples of conduct that are violations of this Code of Student Conduct include, but are not limited to, involvement or attempted involvement in the following: … endangering the physical or mental health or safety of any person or intentionally or recklessly causing injury to any person … harass... Read MoreUPPS No. 07.04.02: Posting/Distribution of Literature, Informational Booths & Banners on Campus
Speech Code Rating: Green
Speech Code Category: Posting and Distribution Policies
Last updated: September 20, 2020Any person may distribute literature outdoors on grounds owned or controlled by Texas State with the exception of literature that contains a commercial message. For commercial messages, please see UPPS No. 07.04.03, Solicitation on Campus. For employment messages, see Section 03.04. Read More
Texas State University: Independent Student Newspaper Under Fire for Controversial Opinion Column
December 13, 2017
On November 28, 2017, independent student newspaper The University Star published an editorial by opinion columnist Rudy Martinez titled “Your DNA is an abomination.” Martinez’s editorial argued that race — including “whiteness” — is a social construct used to oppress non-white populations. Martinez’s editorial sparked controversy and outrage across campus and online. The article was… Read more
Texas State University student government introduces resolution demanding TPUSA be banned from campus
April 3, 2019
Some representatives of the student government at Texas State University have proposed a resolution that calls for the university to bar a chapter of a conservative student group, Turning Point USA, from campus. The resolution expresses a “hope to foster a learning environment” free of “discrimination, intimidation, or censorship.” If its calls were granted, it… Read more
UPDATE: After Florida school shooting, ‘Worst Colleges for Free Speech’ promising high schoolers a right to protest
March 14, 2018
Update: FIRE has tallied the number of colleges and universities that have made statements supporting free speech, based on the list compiled by Chris Peterson, Massachusetts Institute of Technology assistant director of undergraduate admissions. Out of the schools in our Spotlight database that made statements on free speech, 61 have a “red light” speech code… Read more
The 10 worst colleges for free speech: 2018
February 12, 2018
Every year, FIRE chooses the 10 worst colleges for free speech — and unfortunately, 2017 left us with plenty of options: Campuses were rocked by violent mob censorship, monitored by bias response teams, plagued by free speech zones, and beset by far too many disinvitation attempts. Although the number of colleges with the most restrictive… Read more
FIRE names America’s 10 worst colleges for free speech: 2018
February 12, 2018
PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 12, 2018 — Each year, colleges across the country find dubious ways to silence student and faculty expression. In the last year, administrators became embroiled in litigation for telling a student he couldn’t hand out Spanish-language copies of the U.S. Constitution outside a free speech zone, continued a years-long effort to ban a… Read more
Texas State University, asked to protect student newspaper’s First Amendment rights, offers muted response
December 22, 2017
Earlier this month, FIRE joined the National Coalition Against Censorship and the Student Press Law Center in a letter to Texas State University President Denise M. Trauth, calling on TSU to clearly rebuff threats by its student body president to defund the student newspaper, The University Star. The newspaper faced calls for revocation of its… Read more
Students, faculty, and administrators launch attack on Texas State University newspaper
December 13, 2017
Attacks on student newspapers following the publication of controversial articles are unfortunately commonplace. Over the years, FIRE has seen newspaper advisers fired, issues stolen from racks, formal disciplinary investigations, attempted administrative takeovers, threats to newspaper funding, and even complete defunding of all student media, simply because some on (or off) campus did not like what… Read more
Texas Students, FIRE’s Joe Cohn is Coming to a Campus Near You
October 6, 2014
Yeehaw! Joe Cohn, FIRE’s Legislative and Policy Director, will be traveling across the Lone Star State for a rootin’ tootin’ Texan campus tour. Students and faculty at or near the University of Houston, University of Texas at San Antonio, University of Texas at Austin, Texas State University at San Marcos, and Texas A&M are invited… Read more
Texas State’s ‘Common Experience’ on First Amendment Should Begin With Revision of Speech Codes
September 22, 2011
We recently took note of an interview featuring Texas State University-San Marcos (TSU) President Denise Trauth in TSU’s The University Star, in which President Trauth spoke at length about her experiences as an undergraduate reporter at her college’s campus newspaper, as a high school journalism teacher, and as features editor for The Daily Iowan at… Read more
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