Will Texas universities face perfect storm of cuts?
The top three sources of revenue for Texas public universities are all being targeted for reductions or freezes by federal or state government leaders. Full Story
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Matthew Watkins began serving as editor in chief of the Tribune in September 2024. Matthew is a Texas native, born in Houston and raised in Austin. He attended public schools and graduated from Texas A&M University. He’s spent nearly two decades in Texas journalism, and previously worked at The Eagle in Bryan-College Station and The Dallas Morning News. Matthew joined the Tribune in 2015 has held various roles, including higher education reporter, breaking news editor and politics editor. As a managing editor, Matthew has guided the Tribune’s award-winning journalism and other reporting of statewide significance, including coverage of elections and legislative sessions to major breaking news and ambitious storytelling about the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the Texas-Mexico border, the tragic school shooting in Uvalde, the impeachment of Texas attorney general and battles over public education. He lives in Austin with his wife, Susan, and their two children.
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![University of Houston President Renu Khator (center) and Texas Tech University System Chancellor Robert Duncan were among those who testified during a May 10, 2016, House Higher Education Committee hearing.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
How a college student election got the attention of the energy secretary
Thanks to some glow sticks and a strict interpretation of election rules, the student body president election at Texas A&M University has gained national attention — and the suspicion of former Gov. Rick Perry. Full Story
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![Energy Secretary and former Gov. Rick Perry flanked by Texas A&M student president candidates Robert McIntosh (l.) and Bobby Brooks.]()
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Former Gov. Perry questions legitimacy of Texas A&M student body election
Former Gov. Rick Perry, now the U.S. energy secretary, is questioning the legitimacy of the election that gave his alma mater its first openly gay student body president. Full Story
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![Former Gov. Perry is sworn in before testifying at a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing on his nomination to be Energy secretary on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on January 19, 2017.]()
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Texas senators weigh bills that would limit college tuition growth
The Senate Higher Education Committee on Wednesday considered several bills related to limiting tuition increases. Full Story
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![Senate Higher Education Committee chair Kel Seliger listens to a witness during a hearing April 26, 2016 on higher education tuition rates at the Texas Capitol.]()
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As Texas higher ed tuition rises, financial aid is covering less and less
Sixty percent of Texas schoolchildren are poor, and the state wants more of them to go to college. But the aid it offers them doesn't go nearly as far as it used to. Full Story
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![Pre-med sophomore Ricardo Gutierrez on the University of Houston campus in Houston on March 15, 2017.]()
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Universities face funding cuts of 6 percent to 10 percent in Senate plan
In an attempt to make major changes in how higher education is funded, the Senate Finance Committee is proposing major cuts to each state university. Full Story
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Texas bullet train firm calls provision added to budget a "job killer"
Officials with Texas Central Partners, the private firm developing the Houston-Dallas high-speed rail line, said the rider added to the state senate's proposed budget Wednesday would put their project at risk. Full Story
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![A high-speed Texas train is planned to run near railroad tracks along Hempstead Road in northwest Houston.]()
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Texas A&M law school cracks U.S. News' top 100 list
Texas A&M University's law school came in at 92 — its first time in the top 100 since A&M took over the school in 2013. The University of Texas at Austin's law school remains the highest-ranked in the state. Full Story
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![Texas A&M University School of Law]()
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Lawmakers to take another look at cutting back free tuition program for veterans' kids
The state is set for another debate about the cost of a program that provides free tuition to children of military veterans. Full Story
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It cost $9 million to attract a top engineer to A&M. Was that worth it?
The state spent big to recruit professor Thomas Overbye to Texas A&M University. But lawmakers are questioning whether it should devote millions to make similar hires in the future. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott discusses the Governor's University Research Initiative grant program at the Governor's Mansion during a reception on March 6, 2017. Renowned electrical engineering professor Tom Overbye (third from the right), who recently joined Texas A&M University, is shown standing behind Abbott.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune