Texas just turned a little-known Muslim STEM startup school into a statewide fight over who gets to call themselves a “university” – and what happens when faith, immigration, and consumer protection collide in one small Dallas office park.

Story Snapshot

• Texas ordered “Texas American Muslim University at Dallas” (TexAM) to shut down as an unauthorized degree-granting institution.^[1][2][3]
• Gov. Greg Abbott personally directed regulators to issue a cease-and-desist, framing TexAM as an illegal Islamic school.^[1][3]
• TexAM’s founder says the school has not charged tuition, has not granted degrees, and is seeking proper authorization.^[2]
• The clash exposes how Texas polices higher education, protects students, and handles religiously branded institutions.

How A Small Muslim STEM School Landed In Texas’ Crosshairs

State regulators say TexAM popped onto their radar the way many sketchy schools do: through its own website. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board said it “recently became aware” that “Texas American Muslim University at Dallas” was advertising itself as a university, promoting science, technology, engineering, and math degrees blended with mandatory Islamic studies, and inviting students to enroll online.^[2] Under Texas law, any private school offering degrees must first secure a state Certificate of Authority, and TexAM, officials say, never did.^[1][2]

The board’s cease-and-desist letter, described in press accounts, told TexAM to immediately stop advertising degree programs, halt enrollment, and stop using protected terms like “university” and “college.”^[1][2] Regulators warned the group could face criminal liability, civil penalties, and action under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act if it ignored the order.^[2] The message was direct: in Texas, you do not sell degrees until the state is sure they are real, no matter how noble your religious or educational mission.

Abbott, Paxton, And The Politics Wrapped Around A License

Gov. Greg Abbott did not quietly let the education board handle the enforcement. He announced that he “directed” the board to issue the cease-and-desist to an “unauthorized Islamic educational institution operating illegally in Texas,” promising that “legal action will follow” if TexAM refused to comply.^[1][2][3] That framing echoed through conservative media, turning a technical licensing dispute into a high-visibility stand for rule of law, brand protection, and taxpayer-side vigilance.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton then escalated further, suing the TexAM entity for allegedly operating as an unlicensed university and using branding that created confusion with Texas A&M University, the flagship public institution. The lawsuit claims TexAM’s “TexAM” name and marketing could mislead students into believing they were dealing with the storied Texas A&M system rather than a new, unapproved nonprofit. From a conservative, consumer-protection angle, that accusation goes to the core concern: are young people, often first-generation Americans, being sold something that looks like a real degree but is not?

What The School Claims, And Where Its Story Falls Short

TexAM’s founder, Shahid A. Bajwa, paints a softer picture. He says the institution is legally registered as a nonprofit and is operating under a “doing business as” name for Texas American Muslim University at Dallas.^[2] He insists the school “has not charged tuition,” “does not grant degrees, certificates, or credentials” yet, and is “in the process of seeking the necessary authorizations and accreditations.”^[2] From his perspective, TexAM is a work-in-progress ministry of education, not a full-blown diploma mill preying on students.

Those statements, while reassuring on the surface, leave key gaps. Bajwa does not provide evidence that an application for a Certificate of Authority was actually filed and pending when the state acted.^[2] He also does not directly deny that the website advertised specific STEM degrees or invited students to enroll, which is what triggered the board’s enforcement.^[1][2][3] That matters because Texas law focuses not just on whether diplomas have been printed, but whether the public is being solicited for unapproved degrees in the first place.

Why The “University” Label And Muslim Identity Make This Explosive

Texas tightly guards educational labels for the same reason it polices plumbing licenses and doctor titles: once you let anyone put “university” on a sign, you invite fraud, debt, and shattered careers. Chapter 61 of the Texas Education Code allows the state to stop entities that use words like “university” without approval and to treat misbranding and fake degrees as potential criminal and consumer-protection matters.^[2] That approach lines up with common-sense conservative priorities: guard families, enforce clear rules, and punish deception, not innovation.

At the direction of Governor Abbott, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) today sent a letter demanding that an entity calling itself Texas American Muslim University at Dallas (TexAM) cease all operations. pic.twitter.com/1zs5TMl5Re

— Hemingwaypaws (@Hemingwaypaws) May 21, 2026

But this case comes wrapped in religious identity. TexAM proudly brands itself as a Muslim institution offering Islamic-centered education; officials and media repeatedly call it a “Muslim university” or “Islamic educational institution.”^[1][2][3] That language almost guarantees the fight gets sucked into the culture-war vortex. Supporters will see a governor finally cracking down on dubious foreign-influenced institutions. Critics will say the state is targeting Muslims while other unlicensed operators skate. Without full board files and application records in public view, both narratives can live on talk radio forever.

What This Reveals About Higher Education, Trust, And Scrutiny

This standoff exposes a deeper reality: Americans over 40 grew up with an assumption that a “college degree” meant something fixed and trustworthy. The last twenty years blew that up with for-profit scandals, online diploma mills, and crushing student debt. Texas regulators, by hammering TexAM early, are signaling that unapproved experiments will not get much leash, especially when they flirt with the prestige of “university” and the brand equity of Texas A&M.^[2] That approach may feel heavy-handed, but it reflects legitimate skepticism born of hard experience.

For Texans who care about both religious liberty and consumer protection, the standard should be evenhanded toughness. Every school—Christian, Muslim, secular, left-wing, right-wing—ought to follow the same clear rule: before you sell degrees or use the word “university,” you go through the front door of state oversight and prove you are real. If TexAM ultimately produces a proper application, transparent finances, and credible academic plans, it should be allowed to compete like any other private college. If not, Texas is right to shut the doors before students walk through them.

Sources:

[1] Web – Abbott’s Urgent Order: TexAM University Banned in Texas – Audacy

[2] Web – State Board Orders Muslim University in Dallas To Shut Down

[3] YouTube – Texas to Shut Down Unauthorized ‘American Muslim University’