Muslim Student Associations maintain a presence across several North Texas universities, prompting State Board of Education member Brandon Hall (R-District 11) to raise concerns about the organizations’ historical origins and what he described as their growth on college campuses.
“The rise and growth of MSA chapters on Texas college campuses is no coincidence. It’s a coordinated, subversive effort to establish a foothold in our institutions,” Hall told The Dallas Express.
“The MSA is [a] front organization for the Muslim Brotherhood, which has made its subversive intentions against the United States well known,” Hall alleged. “Texans should take this very seriously and demand that public institutions not allow the MSA to operate on their campuses.”
The Dallas Express has not independently established that the Muslim Brotherhood currently controls or maintains organizational ties to the North Texas MSA chapters identified in this article.
MSAs across North Texas
Muslim Student Associations operate at multiple public and private North Texas universities.
The University of North Texas lists its Muslim Student Association as an organization intended to facilitate involvement and provide representation for Muslim students and their interests. UNT’s calendar listed a January 14, 2026, MSA event titled “Being Muslim on Campus.”
Texas Christian University also recognizes an MSA. TCU describes the group as providing educational and support programs for Muslim students, promoting Muslim unity and disseminating Islamic knowledge while fostering relationships with non-Muslims.
Southern Methodist University similarly maintains an MSA. SMU says its Muslim chaplain and MSA work together on religious, social, cultural and educational activities, including Quran classes, academic panels, charitable initiatives and other programs.
The University of Texas at Dallas’ calendar also documents past MSA activities, including a November 16, 2022, educational lecture about the prophet Musa.
MSA National founded in 1963
The national organization traces its history back more than six decades.
The Muslim Students Association of the U.S. and Canada began in January 1963 at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign during a conference of Muslim students from across the United States and Canada, according to MSA National’s website.
“Established in January 1963, the Muslim Students Association of the U.S. & Canada — also known as MSA National — continues to serve Muslim students during their college and university careers by facilitating their efforts to establish, maintain, and develop local MSA chapters,” the organization states.
MSA National says it has served as a “uniting forum for Muslim students from diverse backgrounds” for more than 60 years.
Historical Muslim Brotherhood claims
MSA’s early history has also received scrutiny over the involvement of individuals associated with the Muslim Brotherhood.
Individuals the Hudson Institute identified as Muslim Brotherhood members participated in MSA’s early development, a 2008 analysis reported. Citing documents it attributed to the Brotherhood, the analysis described how early Brotherhood members in North America established a Muslim student organization before a more formal MSA structure emerged at the University of Illinois in 1963.
“The next year, a more formal organizational structure was created by two Brotherhood members, Ahmed Totonji and Jamal Barzinji, who helped found the Muslim Students Association (MSA) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign,” the analysis states.
Early MSA chapters also distributed English translations of writings by Muslim Brotherhood founder Hassan al-Banna, Sayyid Qutb and other Islamist ideologues, according to the analysis.
Hall argues that the history warrants scrutiny of MSA’s presence at Texas universities.
Abbott’s Texas designation
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, Gov. Greg Abbott (R-Texas) issued a proclamation on November 18, 2025, designating the Muslim Brotherhood and the Council on American-Islamic Relations as foreign terrorist organizations and transnational criminal organizations under Texas law.
Abbott alleged that the organizations had supported terrorism and sought to undermine American laws. The proclamation also sought to prohibit the organizations from acquiring real-property interests in Texas.
Two days later, Abbott directed the Texas Department of Public Safety to launch criminal investigations into the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR, including potential violations of state and federal law.
CAIR disputed Abbott’s allegations and challenged his actions in a federal lawsuit filed in November 2025, arguing that the designation lacked a factual and legal basis.
Abbott’s announced designation concerns the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR. It does not designate MSA National or the individual Muslim Student Associations operating at North Texas universities.
The Dallas Express reached out to MSA National for comment but did not receive a response.
Provided by Dallas Express
