Through his role as vice chair on the House Oversight Committee on Weaponization of State Government, Schriver said he has been able to bridge the gap between the Appropriations committee and his own “to enact what I believe will be some powerful changes that I hope will send a message to Michigan State.”

The changes in question concern an investigation launched by conservative students under MSU’s Young Americans for Freedom chapter following pushback from state Republicans after a TE 101 syllabus was released in October.

The class, "Social Foundations of Justice and Equity in Education," is required for all students seeking a teaching certification. The class’s sole required text, "We Want to Do More than Survive: Abolitionist Teaching and the Pursuit of Educational Freedom," features an excerpt that compares whiteness as “addicted” to “making everyone feel guilty for working towards its elimination” — a snippet read aloud by Schriver during the TPUSA meeting. 

“How exactly does this disturbing mindset help prepare these students to effectively teach incoming generations?” Schriver said.

YAF has since filed public records requests for course materials relating to the “development, creation, implementation, and execution” of classes they believe push anti-white ideology. 

Schriver, an MSU alum, was one of the many critics in October. “Formal action is being pursued immediately to right this deep wrong,” he wrote in a social media post. 

Since then, the representative has shown public support for the students in their probe against the College of Education, acting as a "liaison" between them and the state government.

Students have been "blackballed" by administrative staff while attempting to address their concerns, Schriver said. Still, he has been working with legislators across the aisle in both the Oversight and Appropriations committees. Schriver declined to provide names and stated he is "pretty tight with everybody."

Schriver said he hopes MSU will make changes, such as issuing an apology and changing the curriculum. If not, the House of Representatives' proposed April budget may result in retaliatory funding cuts to the university. 

Last year, the initial budget introduced by House Republicans proposed a 72.6% cut, totaling $237.4 million, to the university’s operational funding. The number was reduced to 18.3%, or $56.6 million, by the time it advanced to the Senate. 

“That is why members of the legislature have to be willing to ask tough questions, and if necessary, use the tools we have in the budget process to hold universities accountable,” Schriver said.

MSU said that critics took excerpts of the syllabus out of context and misrepresented the course in response to public blowback. Students within the College of Education have also defended the course. 

One student in the audience asked Schriver if he’d be open to looking into other colleges at MSU, naming the College of Social Sciences as an example. 

“Every college, every class — we need to look at everything,” Schriver said.