By Jessica Priest and Alex Nguyen, The Texas Tribune.

State Sen. Brandon Creighton , the architect of major higher education reforms that banned diversity programs, limited faculty influence and tightened rules on campus protests, is poised to become the next chancellor of the Texas Tech University System.

Texas Tech Board Chair Cody Campbell said on Sunday that he expects the board to unanimously name the Conroe Republican the sole finalist for the system’s top job.

“He has been a strong voice in the fight to get our colleges and universities back on track and clearly shares the values and vision of the Texas Tech community,” Campbell wrote on X , formerly known as Twitter. “Texas Tech stands at a pivotal crossroads and is poised to accelerate the pace of massive growth and progress that we have achieved. We are confident that Senator Creighton will continue to advance our mission of serving students, driving research, and strengthening communities across the State, and especially in West Texas. He is, unquestionably, the right person for the job, and we all look forward to working with him.”

Less than an hour later, Board Vice Chair Dustin Womble also posted his support, and House Speaker Dustin Burrows, a Texas Tech alum, congratulated Creighton.

“Senator Creighton’s leadership and expertise on higher education matters will be a tremendous benefit to Texas Tech,” Burrows said.

Neither Creighton nor other Texas Tech regents could be immediately reached for comment on Sunday.

In the last three years, Creighton, who chairs the Texas Senate’s education committee, has authored some of the most impactful legislation for Texas higher education in decades: Senate Bill 17, which bans diversity, equity and inclusion offices at public universities; Senate Bill 37, which gives governor-appointed regents more authority over university operations and limits faculty’s influence on their schools; and Senate Bill 2972, which sets new rules on when, where and how protests can take place on campuses.

Together, these measures have significantly shifted control over higher education from campus leaders to regents and state lawmakers, upending a longstanding balance of power that has traditionally given universities greater autonomy.

Creighton’s appointment could strengthen Texas Tech’s political influence at the Capitol. He helped create the Texas University Fund , a $3.9 billion endowment approved by voters in 2023 that sends hundreds of millions of dollars to Texas Tech, the University of Houston, Texas State University and the University of North Texas. Lawmakers established the fund to help these schools compete with the state’s two flagship university systems, the University of Texas and Texas A&M, which draw billions in support from the Permanent University Fund , a $39.5 billion oil-and gas-funded endowment that other emerging research universities cannot access.

Creighton would be new to Raider Country. A graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, he earned his law degree from Oklahoma City University. He was a state representative for seven years before winning a Senate Seat in 2014, representing Chambers, Galveston, Harris, Jefferson and Montgomery counties. His current term runs through January 2027. He would have to vacate his seat before then, at which point Abbott would be authorized to call a special election to fill the vacancy.

The Texas Tribune first reported on Thursday that Creighton and U.S. Jodey Arrington, R-Lubbock, were in the running to succeed Chancellor Tedd Mitchell, who announced his retirement in July. The board met behind closed doors for four hours on Saturday and then adjourned without taking any action. The earliest the board could meet next would be Thursday. By law, the board must wait 21 days before finalizing Creighton’s appointment. If confirmed, Creighton would become the sixth chancellor since the system’s creation in 1996.

The system, based in Lubbock, includes five institutions that enrolled 69,502 students in 2024: Texas Tech University, Texas Tech Health Sciences Center, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso, Angelo State University and Midwestern State University.

Creighton’s appointment is the latest in a recent string of politically connected leaders — rather than career academics — taking top roles at Texas universities. Earlier this year, former Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar became chancellor of Texas A&M University System, and former state Rep. John Zerwas became chancellor of the University of Texas System.

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