Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued a Richardson-based institution known as Texas American Muslim University, or TexAM, on Monday, alleging it illegally operated as a private university without required state authorization and misled prospective students about its legitimacy.
The lawsuit, filed in Collin County District Court, targets TexAM and associated individuals. It accuses the group of advertising bachelor’s and master’s degree programs in STEM fields, including computer science and cybersecurity with Islamic studies components, while promoting a campus in Richardson and recruiting students online and overseas. TexAM has never received the certificate of authority required under Texas law to operate a private postsecondary institution, according to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
On May 6, the Coordinating Board issued TexAM a cease-and-desist letter, determining the school was operating illegally and prohibited from offering degrees. Paxton’s office also noted that TexAM’s nonprofit corporate charter was forfeited in February and remains forfeited. The lawsuit further alleges TexAM adopted branding and a name confusingly similar to Texas A&M University, prompting a separate cease-and-desist from the Texas A&M University System.
Attorney General Ken Paxton Sues School Illegally Operating as “TexAM” for Offering Unauthorized Degrees and Misleading Texans: https://t.co/iEvScpe2OP
— Texas Attorney General (@TXAG) May 18, 2026
Paxton is seeking an injunction to stop TexAM from operating as a university and more than $1 million in civil penalties for alleged violations of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices-Consumer Act and the Texas Education Code. “TexAM has repeatedly disregarded Texas law, misrepresented its authority to grant degrees, and risked deceiving students about its legitimacy,” Paxton said in a statement. “My office will not allow illegal, unaccredited degree mills to operate in Texas.”
TexAM founder and chair Shahid A. Bajwa told The Texas Tribune that the organization had already complied with the Coordinating Board’s May 6 letter. He said the group stopped using the university name, ceased offering graduate classes, and is no longer operating as a university, though it intends to continue as an institute. Bajwa maintained that any similarity in branding was not intended to mislead and that the school’s faith component was transparent to students.
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