University of Houston administrators are floating a major slim-down of the school’s general-education menu that could take roughly four out of every ten courses out of the core. The draft proposal would narrow the list of classes undergraduates can use to meet the 42-credit (14-course) core requirement and, according to faculty who have seen the documents, might create registration traffic jams and leave students less prepared for graduate and professional programs. For now, the plan is a draft that is open for campus feedback while administrators shape a final recommendation for system leaders.
According to a document obtained by the Houston Chronicle, the UH Core Curriculum Working Group suggested keeping almost 160 courses and cutting roughly 100 others, a reduction of about 40 percent of current options. The courses flagged include explicitly political or cultural offerings as well as classes students use to build skills or round out their studies. Examples on the recommended-cut list range from “Intro to Global Climate Change” to “Black Liberation Theology,” “Introduction to Women’s Studies” and “Introduction to LGBT Studies.” Faculty members say many of those courses are key gateway classes that pull students into smaller departments and help majors get ready for advanced work.
What the law requires
The review traces back to Texas’ Senate Bill 37, passed in 2025, which orders governing boards to periodically reexamine core curricula and certify that courses are “foundational,” “necessary” for civic and professional life, and aligned with workforce and accreditation standards. The law spells out those broad requirements and started the clock on system-level reviews that public campuses across Texas have been rolling out. For a wider look at how SB 37 is reshaping reviews at other state universities, see reporting by The Texas Tribune.
How UH says it's proceeding
University leaders describe the document as an early step in a multi-phase process, not a done deal. In campus messages, President Renu Khator outlined a plan that directed the Provost’s Office and the university’s general counsel to vet core classes against SB 37’s criteria, share those findings with faculty, and then advise administrators on possible paths forward. The university has said the working group’s draft recommendations will be reviewed by leadership before any proposed changes are sent to the University of Houston System Board of Regents.
Faculty and student concerns
The campus chapter of the American Association of University Professors has urged administrators to hit pause on what it calls a rushed review, arguing that the approach so far undercuts transparency and faculty governance and could encourage self-censorship. The group laid out those concerns in a detailed February letter. Some instructors told reporters they were stunned to see long-running, skills-focused courses marked for removal. “This is basically DOGE-ing the core curriculum over the summer while nobody’s looking,” said one associate professor, and another faculty member said removing her two-decade writing lab from the core “does a disservice to students.” These reactions were reported in local coverage and in the AAUP’s correspondence with campus leaders.
What happens next
Administrators plan to gather faculty feedback before sending a final proposal to the University of Houston System Board of Regents, which is responsible for certifying the system’s core review under Board policy and state law. The regents have set the formal ground rules in Policy 21.14 and will ultimately decide which courses count toward the 42-credit core, a move faculty warn could reshape enrollment patterns and the academic pipeline into smaller departments.
