University of Austin

Last updated

University of Austin
University of Austin Logo without Wordmark 2024.svg
MottoDare to Think
Type Private liberal arts college
EstablishedNovember 8, 2021;3 years ago (2021-11-08)
Founders Joe Lonsdale
Pano Kanelos
Niall Ferguson
Bari Weiss
Accreditation Unaccredited
Endowment $200 million (2023) [1]
President Pano Kanelos
Provost Jacob Howland
Academic staff
29 [2]
Students92 [3]
Location
Austin
,
Texas
,
78701
,
U.S.

30°17′06″N97°44′43″W / 30.2850°N 97.7453°W / 30.2850; -97.7453
Campus Urban
Colors    Navy and gold
Website uaustin.org
University of Austin Wordmark 2024.svg
The Scarbrough Building in downtown Austin, home of the University of Austin UATX Campus at Scarbrough.jpg
The Scarbrough Building in downtown Austin, home of the University of Austin

The University of Austin (UATX) is a private [4] liberal arts university located in Austin, Texas. [5] The university has established a campus in downtown Austin's Scarbrough Building, and enrolled its first undergraduate cohort in the fall of 2024. [6] [7]

Contents

UATX is not accredited, [8] and its students are not eligible for Federal Student Aid. It is approved to grant bachelor’s degrees by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. [9] The first two classes have been offered full-tuition scholarships. [10] [11]

History

The University of Austin was conceived in May 2021 when venture capitalist Joe Lonsdale, St. John's College president Pano Kanelos, scholar Niall Ferguson, and journalist Bari Weiss met in Austin, Texas. [12] The proposal was publicized six months later in an article by Kanelos in Weiss's Substack newsletter Common Sense (now The Free Press ). [13] [14]

Founding faculty fellows included Peter Boghossian, Ayaan Hirsi Ali (Hoover Institution), and Kathleen Stock. [15] Other advisors included former Harvard President Lawrence Summers, former ACLU President Nadine Strossen, and former president of the American Enterprise Institute Arthur Brooks. [14]

In November 2021, the university's website listed Robert Zimmer, Larry Summers, John Nunes, Gordon Gee, Steven Pinker, Deirdre McCloskey, Leon Kass, Jonathan Haidt, Glenn Loury, Joshua Katz, Vickie Sullivan, Geoffrey Stone, Bill McClay, and Tyler Cowen as advisors to the university. [16]

On November 11, 2021, Robert Zimmer announced his resignation from the university board, saying that UATX had made statements about higher education that "diverged very significantly from my own views". [17] Shortly thereafter, Pinker followed suit. [18] UATX apologized for creating "unnecessary complications" for Pinker and Zimmer by not clarifying [sooner] what their advisory roles entailed. [19]

On June 9, 2022, the University of Austin was taking applications for its "Forbidden Courses" program with two-week-long sessions in the old (pre-1954) Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, Texas. [20] Philanthropist Harlan Crow, a donor to the university, [21] provided classroom space in Dallas for UATX. On July 6, 2022, the school announced that Richard Dawkins had joined its advisory board. [22] In December 2022, board member Heather Heying resigned stating that the school was not adequately invested in scientific inquiry and "does not represent my scientific and pedagogical values." [23]

After receiving certification from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to award degrees in October 2023, UATX began accepting applications for its first four-year undergraduate cohort enrolling in Fall 2024, and established a campus in Austin's Scarbrough Building. The entire class of 100 students received full four-year scholarships, paid from private donations. By November 2023, UATX had reportedly raised $200 million from 2,600 donors and received over 6,000 inquiries from potential faculty. [1] In Bloomberg, UATX reported a surge in interest from donors "horrified by the response at top-tier universities" to the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel. [24]

In March 2024, UATX reported that they had formed a student debate society, the Austin Union, modeled after the Oxford Union. [25] In June, the University of Austin announced a $5 million bitcoin endowment in partnership with cryptocurrency platform Unchained Capital. [26] In November 2024, UATX was featured in a CBS News 60 Minutes segment titled “Disruptor U.” [27]

Academics

UATX’s undergraduate program begins with a core curriculum consisting of 15 courses based on a Great Books canon. [28] In their junior and senior years, students specialize in interdisciplinary academic centers. [29] A practical capstone project is undertaken across all four years. [30]

Accreditation

UATX is certified by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to award a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies degree. It is not an accredited university. [9]

UATX is in the process of determining eligibility to apply for candidate for accreditation status with the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE). [8] MSCHE is an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education to conduct accreditation and pre-accreditation (candidacy status) activities for institutions of higher education, and direct assessment programs offered at those institutions. The graduation of a first class of undergraduates is normally a prerequisite for accreditation, meaning UATX can expect the first accreditation cycle to have been completed after the graduation of the inaugural class in 2028. [31]

Reception

The initial announcement of the project received some positive reception, [32] including praise from Law & Liberty for ushering in "a new era in educational reform," [33] and applause from The New Criterion for its efforts to "keep that old flame of free inquiry alive." [34] New York Times opinion columnist Ross Douthat saw the launch of a new university as a positive development, pointing out how few major universities have been established since the nineteenth century, but acknowledged how expensive doing so would be. He also saw conflicting forces in the project, including the "tension between the desire to promote great academic seriousness and the culture-war flag-waving that might be necessary to rally donor support". [35]

The project also garnered criticism. Initial responses to the project included criticism of the lack of a plan to achieve the project's goals. [8] The New York Times journalist Anemona Hartocollis questioned in 2021 whether the founders would be able to "translate a provocative idea into a viable institution" while The New Republic 's Alex Shephard described the plan as "largely half baked". [36] [37] Jennifer Wunder, a professor at Georgia Gwinnett College who participated in the process of obtaining her institution's initial accreditation, in a since-deleted Twitter thread [38] considered UATX’s 2021 business plan timeline to establish accredited graduate and undergraduate programs to be nearly impossible to meet. [39] The proposal for a University of Austin was described in 2021 by Gabriella Swerling in The Daily Telegraph [40] as "anti-cancel culture" and by Alex Shephard in The New Republic as "anti-woke". [37]

After initially holding silent about the reasons for his resignation from UATX’s advisory board, Steven Pinker told The Harvard Crimson that UATX had (as the journalists put it) "confused freedom of speech with the political right"—that it had staffed itself primarily with people on the right, regardless of their position on free speech, extending to some opponents of it. [18] However, upon the announcement of the certification of UATX’s undergraduate program, Pinker acknowledged UATX’s "maturity" in light of his previous "misgivings," lauding its newly earned certification and the "contrast & challenge to the legacy universities" it offers. [41]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">College</span> Educational institution

A college may be a tertiary educational institution, part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary school.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Texas at Austin</span> Public university in Austin, Texas, US

The University of Texas at Austin is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 51,913 students as of fall 2023, it is also the largest institution in the system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of North Texas</span> Public university in Denton, Texas, US

The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public research university in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. UNT's main campus is in Denton, Texas, and it also has a satellite campus in Frisco, Texas. It offers 114 bachelor's, 97 master's, and 39 doctoral degree programs. UNT is the flagship member of the University of North Texas System, which includes additional universities in Dallas and Fort Worth. Established in 1890, UNT is one of the largest universities in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Texas System</span> Public university system in Texas

The University of Texas System is a public university system in the U.S. state of Texas. It includes nine universities and five independent health institutions. The UT System is headquartered in Downtown Austin. It is the largest university system in Texas with 250,000+ enrolled students, 21,000+ employed faculty, 83,000+ health care professionals, researchers and support staff. The UT System's $42.7 billion endowment is the largest of any public university system in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swinburne University of Technology</span> Public university in Hawthorn, Australia

The Swinburne University of Technology is a public research university in Melbourne, Australia. It is the modern descendant of the Eastern Suburbs Technical College established in 1908, renamed Swinburne Technical College in 1913 after its co-founders George and Ethel Swinburne. It has three campuses in metropolitan Melbourne: Hawthorn, where its main campus is located; Wantirna; and Croydon, as well the Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus in the East Malaysian state of Sarawak. It also offers courses online and through its partnered institutions in Australia and overseas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ateneo de Manila University</span> Roman Catholic university in Metro Manila, Philippines

Ateneo de Manila University, commonly referred to as Ateneo de Manila or Ateneo, is a private, Catholic, teaching and research university, and a basic education institution located in Quezon City, Philippines. Established in 1859 by the Jesuits, it is among the oldest Jesuit-administered institutions of higher education in the Asia-Pacific.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Maine</span> Public research university in Orono, Maine, US

The University of Maine (UMaine) is a public land-grant research university in Orono, Maine, United States. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the flagship university of the University of Maine System. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American University of Beirut</span> Private university in Lebanon

The American University of Beirut is a private, non-sectarian, and independent university chartered in New York with its campus in Beirut, Lebanon. AUB is governed by a private, autonomous board of trustees and offers programs leading to bachelor's, master's, MD, and PhD degrees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Phoenix</span> American for-profit university

University of Phoenix (UoPX) is a private for-profit university headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. Founded in 1976, the university confers certificates and degrees at the certificate, associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degree levels. It is institutionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and has an open enrollment admissions policy for many undergraduate programs. The school is owned by Apollo Global Management and Vistria Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trinity International University</span> Christian liberal arts university in Bannockburn, Illinois, U.S.

Trinity International University (TIU) is an evangelical Christian university headquartered in Bannockburn, Illinois. It comprises Trinity College, a theological seminary, a law school, and a camp called Timber-lee. The university also maintains campuses in North Lauderdale, Florida and Miami, Florida; the camp is located in East Troy, Wisconsin. TIU is the only university affiliated with Evangelical Free Church of America in the United States and enrolls 1,242 students. On February 17, 2023, TIU announced it was moving the undergraduate program to online modalities only and closed the residential campus at the end of the Spring 2023 semester. The online undergraduate program is ending at the end of the Spring 2024 semester.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Texas at San Antonio</span> Public university in San Antonio, Texas

The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) is a public research university in San Antonio, Texas, United States. Established in 1969, UTSA is the largest university in San Antonio and the eighth-largest by enrollment in the state of Texas enrolling over 35,000 students across its five campuses spanning more than 758 acres. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very High Research Activity". The UTSA Institute for Economic Development generates $2.6 billion in direct economic impact.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hood College</span> Private liberal arts college in Frederick, Maryland, US

Hood College is a private college in Frederick, Maryland. In fall 2018, Hood enrolled 2,052 students. Thirty-eight percent of students are either members of under-represented racial or ethnic populations or from foreign countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Houston–Clear Lake</span> Public university in Pasadena and Houston, Texas, U.S.

The University of Houston–Clear Lake (UHCL) is a public university in Pasadena and Houston in Texas, with branch campuses in Pearland and Texas Medical Center. It is part of the University of Houston System. Founded in 1971, UHCL had an enrollment of more than 9,000 students for fall 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Concordia University Texas</span> Private university in Austin, Texas, U.S.

Concordia University Texas is a private university in Austin, Texas. The university offers undergraduate, graduate, and online degrees as well as an adult degree program for part-time and returning students.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vellore Institute of Technology</span> Private deemed university in Tamil Nadu, India

Vellore Institute of Technology or VIT is a private deemed university in Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prairie View A&M University</span> Historically black university in Prairie View, Texas

Prairie View A&M University is a public historically black land-grant university in Prairie View, Texas. Founded in 1876, it is one of Texas's two land-grant universities and the second oldest public institution of higher learning in the state. It offers baccalaureate degrees in 50 academic majors, 37 master's degrees and four doctoral degree programs through eight colleges and the School of Architecture. PVAMU is the largest HBCU in the state of Texas and the third largest HBCU in the United States. PVAMU is a member of the Texas A&M University System and Thurgood Marshall College Fund.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Criswell College</span> Christian college and divinity school in Dallas, Texas

Criswell College is a private Baptist Christian college and divinity school in Dallas, Texas. The college's stated mission is to provide ministerial and professional higher education for men and women preparing to serve as Christian leaders throughout society, while maintaining an institutional commitment to biblical inerrancy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zayed University</span> Public university based in Abu Dhabi and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates

Zayed University is a public university in the United Arab Emirates. It has campuses in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of the Philippines Baguio</span> Public university in Baguio, Philippines

The University of the Philippines Baguio, also referred to as UP in the North or UP Baguio, is a public research university located in Baguio, Philippines. It was established in 1921 through the initiative of UP alumni in Baguio and Benguet and was inaugurated as the University of the Philippines College Baguio on April 22, 1961. It was eventually elevated to its present autonomous status as a constituent university on December 2, 2002.

References

  1. 1 2 McGee, Kate (November 8, 2023). "With $200 million and state approval, University of Austin is ready to start accepting applicants". The Texas Tribune. Archived from the original on November 8, 2023. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Our People - Faculty". University of Austin. December 2, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  3. ↑ Sara Weissman (September 4, 2024). "University of Austin Enters Its First Academic Year". Inside Higher Ed . Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  4. ↑ "Private Postsecondary Institutions authorized to operate in Texas". highered.texas.gov/. December 4, 2024. Retrieved December 4, 2024.
  5. ↑ McGee, Kate (November 9, 2021). "The new University of Austin hopes to counter what its founders say is a culture of censorship at most colleges". The Texas Tribune . Archived from the original on November 9, 2021.
  6. ↑ Weissman, Sara. "University of Austin Enters Its First Academic Year". Inside Higher Ed.
  7. ↑ Kelly, Maggie (September 2, 2024). "The Austin Revolution Has Begun". University of Austin. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  8. 1 2 3 "UATX FAQs - Accreditation". University of Austin. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  9. 1 2 "Quarterly Board Agenda". Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. October 2023. p. 120. Archived from the original on May 14, 2024. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
  10. ↑ "College Navigator". National Center for Education Statistics. Archived from the original on October 3, 2023. Retrieved February 19, 2024.
  11. ↑ "Founders Scholarship". University of Austin. December 2, 2024. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  12. ↑ "UATX | Vision & Timeline". uatx.webflow.io. Archived from the original on June 20, 2024. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  13. ↑ McHale, Patrick (November 8, 2021). "Higher-Education Critics Launch University of Austin". Bloomberg News . Archived from the original on November 8, 2021.
  14. 1 2 Menchaca, Megan (November 8, 2021). "Coming soon: The University of Austin, focused on 'the intrepid pursuit of truth'". Austin American-Statesman . Archived from the original on November 9, 2021.
  15. ↑ Kelleher, Patrick (November 8, 2021). "Kathleen Stock helps launch new so-called university with 'forbidden courses' but no actual degrees". Pink News . Archived from the original on November 9, 2021. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
  16. ↑ Wong, Julia Carrie (November 17, 2021). "The new anti-woke academics say the universities are 'broken'. But they aren't giving up their tenured day jobs". The Guardian.
  17. ↑ "Statement from Chancellor Robert J. Zimmer on his role for the University of Austin". University of Chicago (Press release). November 15, 2021. Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
  18. 1 2 Cadenhead, Rebecca EJ; Herszenhorn, Miles J (October 27, 2022). "Steven Pinker and the Fight Over Academia's Future". The Harvard Crimson . Retrieved November 13, 2024.
  19. ↑ "UATX Statement about Robert Zimmer and Steven Pinker". University of Austin (Press release). November 15, 2021. Archived from the original on March 30, 2023. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
  20. ↑ Partain, Claire (June 9, 2022). "Fledgling University of Austin to start 'Forbidden Courses' this month". Austonia. Archived from the original on June 10, 2022.
  21. ↑ Rawlings, Noah (February 19, 2024). "An American Education: Notes from UATX". The New Inquiry . Archived from the original on April 25, 2024. Retrieved May 4, 2024.
  22. ↑ "Renowned evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins joins UATX". University of Austin (Press release). July 6, 2022. Archived from the original on July 6, 2022. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  23. ↑ Heying, Heather (December 6, 2022). "On resigning from the Board of the University of Austin". Natural Selections. Heather Heying. Archived from the original on June 11, 2024. Retrieved June 11, 2024.[ self-published source ]
  24. ↑ Maglione, Francesca (November 17, 2023). "Ivy League Backlash Draws Money, Students to Upstart University in Texas". Bloomberg . Archived from the original on December 20, 2023. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
  25. ↑ "University of Austin (UATX), Launches Debate Society, the Austin Union". University of Austin (Press release). March 4, 2024. Archived from the original on June 30, 2024. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
  26. ↑ "Unchained and University of Austin Introduce Pioneering Bitcoin Endowment". unchained.com. May 31, 2024. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  27. ↑ "UATX says it fights college censorship culture with a focus on free speech". cbsnews.com. CBS News. Retrieved December 1, 2024.
  28. ↑ "Intellectual Foundations". University of Austin. December 2, 2024. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  29. ↑ "Undergraduate Curriculum". University of Austin. December 2, 2024. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  30. ↑ "Polaris Project". University of Austin. December 2, 2024. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  31. ↑ "Standards for Accreditation and Requirements of Affiliation | Thirteenth Edition". Middle States Commission on Higher Education. December 2, 2024. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  32. ↑ Vedder, Richard K. (May 19, 2023). "A Collegiate Renaissance?". James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal . Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  33. ↑ Mendenhall, Allen (November 12, 2021). "Time for a New University?". Law&Liberty. Archived from the original on November 8, 2023. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  34. ↑ "The new order: On the University of Austin". The New Criterion . Vol. 42, no. 3. December 2021. p. 2. Archived from the original on November 18, 2021.
  35. ↑ Douthat, Ross (November 10, 2021). "Opinion | Why We Need New Colleges". The New York Times . ISSN   0362-4331. Archived from the original on November 11, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
  36. ↑ Hartocollis, Anemona (November 9, 2021). "They Say Colleges Are Censorious. So They Are Starting a New One". The New York Times . ISSN   0362-4331. Archived from the original on November 11, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
  37. 1 2 Shephard, Alex (November 8, 2021). "Do We Really Need an Anti-Woke University?". The New Republic . Archived from the original on November 9, 2021. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
  38. ↑ Wunder, Jennifer (November 9, 2021). ".@JTLonsdale retweeted this thoughtful thread by @mualphaxi & I think it deserves a serious reply. So, this is a thread from someone w/lived experience building a college & earning SACS accreditation from scratch. Amusement & sarcasm aside, they're off to a rocky start. 1/". X.com. Archived from the original on November 9, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
  39. ↑ Warner, John (November 9, 2021). "What the University of Austin Gets Right | Inside Higher Ed". Inside Higher Ed . Archived from the original on November 11, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
  40. ↑ Swerling, Gabriella (November 8, 2021). "Kathleen Stock takes job at anti-cancel culture university that welcomes 'thought criminals'". The Daily Telegraph . ISSN   0307-1235. Archived from the original on November 8, 2021.
  41. ↑ Pinker, Steven (November 8, 2023). "Though I had misgivings about UATX @uastinorg when it was announced 2 years ago, it has matured & is now certified. I wish it success in offering a contrast & challenge to the legacy universities (whose sicknesses are increasingly apparent)". X.com. Retrieved December 2, 2024.

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.