The Southern Methodist University campus in Dallas. The school, which was founded by Methodists more than a century ago, is trying to extricate itself from the United Methodist Church.

The university’s decision to update the documents and assert the board’s sole control over the school came during a tumultuous time in the Methodist church’s history.

The Texas Supreme Court ruled June 27, 2025, that the United Methodist Church can sue Southern Methodist University to enforce more control over the school, which the church founded in 1911.

A six-year legal battle between the United Methodist Church and Southern Methodist University is reaching the Texas Supreme Court today. The crux of the issue is who controls the university—its ...

DALLAS — Southern Methodist University has named a new executive vice president and provost, who will oversee the school's research and overall academic quality. The new hire, Rachel Davis ...

The United Methodist Church is facing a crisis that will define its future. Roughly a quarter of its 30,000 congregations in the U.S. are leaving over the church's views on marriage, sexuality and ...

Instead, he drove from his hometown, Sealy, Texas, to Dallas and Southern Methodist University. At the time, Mr. Dickerson’s cars (S.M.U. gave him one, too) were a symbol of the wretched excess ...

By Kate McGee Jan. 2, 2025 Updated: Jan. 3, 2025 Republish A sign at one of the entrances to the Southern Methodist University campus in Dallas on Dec. 20, 2022 Image of Sport/Sipa USA via REUTERS ...