Texas Tech University faculty reported that policies restricting how race, gender, and sexual orientation topics can be taught have driven large-scale self-censorship and uncertainty. A Faculty Senate survey, first reported by The Texas Tribune, found that roughly half of respondents said they altered course content without being asked to comply; additional faculty said the policies prompted them to consider leaving academia. Faculty also raised concerns about academic freedom and a climate of fear at the Lubbock campus, while administrators emphasized that the system’s course-content review process relied on methodology and representative data rather than self-selected survey samples. Texas Tech’s restrictions were introduced in memos late last year and included the creation of a review process for certain course content tied to sexual orientation and gender identity. The new reporting indicates the policy’s effects are broader than required adjustments identified through the formal review, as faculty described preemptive changes and alterations affecting both teaching and research. The dispute underscores how quickly compliance reviews can reshape campus curriculum beyond the initial policy intent.