The Texas Senate has given preliminary approval to a bill that would prohibit a college or university professor from “compelling” a student to adopt certain political beliefs, a proposal belonging to a slew of legislation introduced this session that university leaders and faculty worry will restrict academic freedom in the classroom.

Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, told lawmakers on the Senate floor Tuesday he believed that universities are places where students are exposed to different ideas to develop their own critical thinking skills and that his bill would not censor the discussion of any topics in the college classroom.

“What we are not for is when professors attempt to compel a student to adopt a certain belief, require adherence to a professor’s viewpoint, to a certain viewpoint. That’s another matter entirely. That’s what this bill is about,” Hughes said.

Senate Bill 16 would bar university professors from compelling students “to adopt a belief that any race, sex, or ethnicity or social, political, or religious belief is inherently superior to any other race, sex, ethnicity, or belief.”