Conservative billionaires and some of the biggest GOP donors are pouring millions to a new Texas university that has been described as an “anti-woke” institution.
The Wall Street Journal reported that high-profile GOP donors such as Jeff Yass, real-estate developer Harlan Crow and Investor Len Blavatnik donated to the University of Austin, or UATX. The university, which now has 92 students, has raised roughly $200 million so far.
UATX saw a boom in donations after students at numerous universities across the country began protesting for the Israel-Hamas war, showing support to the Palestinian people. The Journal reported that billionaires were attracted to the idea of “alternative school that says it encourages meritocratic achievement and myriad viewpoints.”
“Much of higher ed today seems to want to reject Western accomplishments and the accomplishments of Western civilizations in their entirety,” Crow said. “Many people think that’s a bad idea.” Crow is a major GOP donor, and has been involved in controversies regarding gifts he made to Justice Clarence Thomas.
UATX’s biggest donor is Pennsylvania billionaire Jeff Yass, who donated $35 million to the university. Yass is the second out-of-state billionaire that has donated the most to Texas politicians, trying to push for school vouchers in the state. He has donated millions to Gov. Greg Abbott as part of his push.
“Higher education needs competition,” he said. “It is time for philanthropists to start new colleges in keeping with the way American learning institutions were founded.”
Blavatnik is one of the highest-profile donors of the university. Though he gave only $1 million, he is surely a prominent figure. Blavatnik is one of the biggest GOP donors and he is linked to Russian oligarchs who have strong ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“It took what happened in the wake of Oct. 7 on the major campuses to convince Wall Street, to convince people in Silicon Valley, that there really was a problem” with higher education, said historian and school founder Niall Ferguson.
In addition, executives from Elon Musk’s SpaceC and Boring Company are helping to develop the university’s curriculum. UATX currently doesn’t have a main campus of its own, though it is now located at a former department store near the Texas Capitol.
UATX currently is not accredited, however, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board approved the institution to grant bachelor’s degrees. Currently, the first and only class of students is receiving full-tuition scholarships worth about $130,000.
Pano Kanelos, the University of Austin’s president, said the school’s top 10 donors vary in “political ideology,” however, the biggest donors have given millions to Republican candidates and causes.
