When Victor Sáenz, an education professor at the University of Texas at Austin, began to focus his research nearly a decade ago on the plight of men in education, he experienced some pushback, even from fellow academics.

“Early on, I’d get a lot of questions,” said Mr. Sáenz, who in 2010 started a mentoring group for male Hispanic students called Project Males — Mentoring to Achieve Latino Educational Success. “I wouldn’t say criticisms, but certainly apprehension or resistance to focusing on this issue.”

But as degree attainment among men has continued to lag that of women, more state policy makers are looking at the issue in a bid to prevent the gap from significantly affecting the state.

Image Alma Arriaga before her graduation from the University of Texas at Austin. Credit... Charlie Pearce for The Texas Tribune

National interest is also rising. Last month, Mr. Sáenz helped lead an online seminar hosted by the White House, which has started initiatives on the education of Hispanic and black men, the populations with the lowest rates of higher education success.