Campus Reform Highlights AIM’s UNT Expose Amid Texas DEI Investigation on University’s Policies

The University of North Texas (UNT) has withdrawn from a local LGBTQ Pride event while it remains under state scrutiny for allegedly violating anti-diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) measures.

This marks the second time in recent years that UNT has rescinded its support for a pride event.

PRIDENTON—a combination of “Pride” and “Denton”—had previously advertised the UNT Eagle Engagement Center’s involvement with an event called “Pride Path,” a chalking event scheduled for June 6. Denton is the main UNT campus.

The organization’s social media posts now note that the university is no longer associated with “Pride Path.”

PRIDENTON is a nonprofit LGBTQ organization that says it supports “2SLGBTQIA+ communities through advocacy, education and celebration.”

In a statement to The Dallas Observer, the school said, “University processes were not followed, and it has been determined that UNT’s participation would violate state law. As a public institution, we strictly adhere to all state law.”

Texas Senate Bill 17, which was signed into law in 2023, bans universities from funding DEI initiatives.

One provision of the legislation prohibits universities from “conducting trainings, programs or activities designed or implemented in reference to race, color, ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual orientation.”

In April, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced an investigation into UNT for possible violations of S.B. 17. The announcement followed an undercover Accuracy in Media (AIM) exposé featuring a UNT administrator saying DEI had been rebranded in response to state law.

The administrator has since been fired, according to an X post from the school.

Read the rest of Campus Reform’s article here.