Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Thursday called for the president of the Alamo Trust, which manages the historic site, to resign over views she expressed in a doctoral dissertation in 2023, suggesting she disagrees with Republican leaders.
“These writings are incompatible with the telling of the history of the battle of the Alamo,” Patrick, a Republican, wrote in an Oct. 23 letter to the Alamo Trust’s board of directors about President and CEO Kate Rogers. “I believe her judgment is now placed in serious question and makes clear she has a totally different view of how the history of the Alamo should be told.”
In the excerpt of her dissertation that Patrick posted on social media, Rogers described the competing politics of Republican state leaders, who want the 1836 battle to be the primary focus of the Alamo’s redevelopment, and of local officials from Bexar County and the City of San Antonio, who have pushed for the project to “tell the full story of the site including its beginning as a home to Indigenous people.”
“Personally, I would love to see the Alamo become a beacon for historical reconciliation and a place that brings people together versus tearing them apart,” wrote Rogers, who was serving as the Alamo Trust’s executive director at the time, “but politically that may not be possible at this time.”
She added, “for all these reasons, I had to be very careful with my study and its implications as it could have negative consequences” for the Alamo project, “as well as my job.”
In her EdD dissertation, which examined the role of historic sites and museums in supporting social studies instruction in K-12 classrooms, Rogers also described the “conservative agenda” of the 2023 legislative session. She noted bills that “ban educators from teaching Critical Race Theory,” and “prohibited the discussion of slavery.” And she discussed the book, “Forget the Alamo,” which argued that maintaining chattel slavery was a primary motivator in the Texas fight for independence.
“Perhaps the biggest dilemma for me as a researcher … had to do with my own political views and my current environment,” Rogers wrote. “Philosophically, I do not believe it is the role of politicians to determine what professional educators can or should teach in the classroom. Instead, teachers should be afforded the autonomy to make those decisions based on their own expertise as well as the needs of their students.”
Patrick’s call for Rogers’ ouster marks the latest flashpoint in a long-running debate over how the story of the Alamo should be presented. Republican state leaders have largely demanded the site remain focused on the 13-day siege and legendary 1836 Battle of the Alamo, rejecting broader narratives that address the Indigenous people of the area and consider the role slavery played in the Texas Revolution.
In response to a request for comment, Rogers said she was not authorized to say anything and did not say if she would resign. The Alamo Trust did not immediately return a request for comment.
Patrick’s push for Rogers’ resignation is the latest effort by Republican state leaders to oust people from their jobs or schools over perceived differences in political ideology. A handful of professors, administrators and students at public universities in Texas have been fired or expelled over the past few months after conservative lawmakers seized on evidence that they had mocked the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk or discussed LGBTQ issues in classroom settings.
In a statement, Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D-San Antonio, urged the board of the Alamo Trust to give Rogers “all due consideration and the full opportunity to contextualize her writings.”
“Alamo Trust President and CEO Dr. Kate Rogers has done the unimaginable: As recently as yesterday, indicators have shown the Alamo Plan is on time and on budget, all with Dr. Rogers at the helm,” Martinez Fischer said.
The roughly $500 million restoration and expansion of the Alamo includes a new museum and visitor center, which is slated to open in 2027 and include eight galleries that cover the history of the Alamo from its Indigenous context through the Battle of the Alamo and its legacy in Texas.
In 2015, the General Land Office — which oversees the Alamo — Bexar County and the City of San Antonio agreed to a set of “guiding principles” that include telling “the entire history of the Alamo area” and embracing “the continuum of history to foster understanding and healing.”
In his letter to the board, Patrick wrote that, “of course the entire story of the Alamo will be told, but the overriding emphasis must be on the ‘13 Days of Glory,’ as nearly 200 men gave their lives to defend liberty and freedom for Texas.”
He added that he would “continue to defend the Alamo today against a rewrite of history.”
This article first appeared on The Texas Tribune.
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