Students grappling with financial upsets and a hurting economy say tuition should be lowered at their Texas universities. But some colleges are adding new fees related to an increase in distance learning.
Raga Justin
Raga Justin covered higher education at The Texas Tribune in 2020. A graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, Raga has worked as a reporting fellow at the Tribune, a reporting intern in the Houston Chronicle’s Austin bureau, and a news desk editor and city and state reporter for The Daily Texan. She was also a journalism coach for the Moody College of Communication’s writing program and the board chair of media and public relations for the Indian Students Association.
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Coronavirus in Texas
UT-Austin students and employees urge officials to stop in-person classes, lower tuition and offer hazard pay
The Texas State Employees Union presented a petition that condemns the upcoming return to campus in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic as harmful. Classes start Wednesday.
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Coronavirus in Texas
“We’re being treated as guinea pigs”: Faculty members fear in-person return to Texas universities
Some faculty members call the pressure to return to face-to-face instruction a callous decision that prioritizes money and the college experience over the safety of the university community.
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Public Education
Texas school district’s dreadlocks ban discriminatory, federal court rules
The decision comes a month after the Barbers Hill Independent School District board of trustees voted to keep the dress code policy, which advocates have deemed racist.
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Coronavirus in Texas
UT planning to limit stadium capacity to 25%. Here’s what you need to know about Texas college football during the pandemic.
Texas schools in the Big 12 and SEC are still planning to play this fall.
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Reopening Texas Universities
Big 12 OKs football season, paving way for UT-Austin, Texas Tech, TCU and Baylor to play
This comes after the Pac-12 and the Big 10 said that they would postpone college football until at least the spring. Southeastern Conference Commissioner Greg Sankey signaled Tuesday that the conference that includes Texas A&M will play this fall.
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Coronavirus in Texas
What losing football to COVID-19 would mean for Texas college towns: “It’s like losing Christmas”
Economists said canceling football would be devastating to local businesses that rely on the huge influxes of cash from home games. Meanwhile, athletics officials weigh whether they can risk the health and welfare of student athletes.
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Higher Education
Texas A&M can’t remove Sul Ross statue without the Legislature’s approval, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton says
Without approval from the Texas Legislature, Texas A&M University leaders cannot remove the Lawrence Sullivan Ross statue on campus, Paxton said Friday. If they decide to relocate it, it must be in a “prominent” location, he added.
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Coronavirus in Texas
Texas universities have started shedding jobs and are bracing for a serious financial hit
It’s impossible to foretell the coronavirus pandemic’s full financial impact on state universities, public and private, but some have already faced millions in lost revenue and unexpected costs. Things will only get worse.
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Coronavirus in Texas
After voluntarily publishing its data, UT-Austin now has the unwelcome distinction of leading U.S. colleges in COVID-19 cases
While some universities nationwide and in Texas are still refusing to disclose coronavirus cases, UT-Austin set up a digital dashboard allowing community members to see updated student, faculty and staff cases. But the transparency has already proven to be a double-edged sword.