The head of the Alamo Historic Site resigns after a top Texas Republican criticizes her views

The CEO of the nonprofit that runs the Alamo Shrine has resigned after a powerful Republican state official publicly criticized her, suggesting her views don’t align with the history of the Texas shrine.

Kate Rogers said in a statement Friday that she resigned the day before, after Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick wrote a letter to the Alamo Trust board suggesting she either resign or be fired. Patrick criticized her for an academic paper questioning the GOP-controlled Legislature’s education policies, and suggested she wanted the Texas historic site to have a broader focus.

“I resigned from my position as president and CEO of the Alamo Trust with mixed emotions yesterday,” Rogers said in a statement sent to The Associated Press. “It has become clear through recent events that it is time for me to move on.”

Several trust officials did not immediately respond to emails or cellphone messages Friday seeking comment.

Patrick sent a letter to the board on Thursday on X, calling her paper “shocking.” I wrote it in 2023 for my PhD in Global Education at the University of Southern California. Patrick posted a portion online.

“I believe her judgment is now in serious question,” Patrick wrote. “She has a completely different perspective on how the history of the Alamo should be told.”

It is the latest episode in an ongoing struggle over how the United States tells its history. Patrick’s call to oust Rogers follows pressure from President Donald Trump to get the Smithsonian museums in Washington to focus less on slavery and other dark parts of America’s past.

He watches: Citizen historians document Smithsonian exhibits under White House oversight

Known as the “Shrine of Texas Liberty,” the Alamo attracts more than 1.6 million visitors annually. The fund is operated under a contract with the Texas General Land Office, and the state plans to spend $400 million on renovations for a new museum and visitor center scheduled to open in 2027. Patrick heads the Texas Senate.

In San Antonio, Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai, the county’s elected top administrator, denounced Patrick’s “blatant political interference.”

“We need to take politics out of our teaching of history,” he said in a statement on Friday.

In the excerpt from her paper, Rogers pointed to the Texas Legislature’s “conservative agenda” in 2023, including bills to limit what can be taught about race and slavery in history courses.

“Philosophically, I do not believe it is the role of politicians to determine what professional teachers can or should teach in classrooms,” she wrote.

Her paper also mentioned a 2021 book, “Forget the Alamo,” which challenges traditional historical narratives surrounding the 13-day siege of the Alamo during Texas’ fight for independence from Mexico in 1836.

Rogers noted that the book argues that the main cause of the war was the determination of Anglo settlers to keep slaves in slavery after Mexico had largely abolished it. Texas won the war and became an independent republic until annexed by the United States in 1845.

Rogers also wrote that the city’s advisory board wanted to tell the “full story” of the site, including its history as an Indigenous homeland — something Republican leaders in the state oppose. She said she would like the Alamo to be “a place that brings people together instead of tearing them apart.”

She added: “But that may not be politically possible at this time.”

Traditional narratives obscure the role slavery may have played in the Texas campaign for independence and portray the Alamo’s defenders as freedom fighters. Patrick’s letter described the siege as “13 days of glory.”

The Mexican army attacked and overran the Texas defenses. But “Remember the Alamo” became a rallying cry for the Texan troops.

“We must ensure that future generations never forget the sacrifice made for freedom,” Patrick wrote in his letter to the foundation’s board of directors. “I will continue to defend the Alamo today against the rewriting of history.”