BISMARCK, ND (KXNET) — A bill that defines certain concepts like race and sex stereotyping on college campuses in North Dakota passed in a House vote on Monday.

Senate Bill 2247 seeks to prohibit colleges from teaching concepts like ‘white privilege’ or classes that create division based on a person’s race or sex.

Grand Forks representative Eric Murphy carried the bill but voted against it because he says the legislature only controls the funding. The curriculum is overseen by the State Board of Higher Education.

The bill also states that if colleges employ a diversity officer, that person must emphasize the ideas of diversity of thought and free speech. The bill also says a college or university may not ask a student or a staffer their political views for being promoted or given tenure.

“And that doesn’t mean re-mold what somebody thinks,” said Representative Murphy. “It means give them alternative views, so that way, they can sit back and say, ‘oh, I really never thought of it that way’. And let’s be honest, a lot of our students from North Dakota don’t have a lot of interactions with people of different cultures.”

The bill passed Monday by a vote of 51-40. It now heads back to appropriations as lawmakers work out how much it will cost.