The latest version of the proposal eliminates language that would have required university curricula not to advocate that “any race, sex, ethnicity or religious belief is inherently superior to another.”
Jessica Priest
Jessica Priest covers higher education, working in partnership with Open Campus. She joined the Tribune in 2022 as an engagement reporter in the ProPublica/Texas Tribune joint investigative unit, contributing to a series that was named a Pulitzer Prize finalist in the explanatory reporting category. Prior to the Tribune, Jessica worked for the Fort Worth Report, USA Today, the Victoria Advocate and the Temple Daily Telegram, reporting on topics that included criminal justice, the environment and local government. Her work has often made an impact. The state’s highest criminal court granted a death row inmate a new trial after she detailed a prosecutor’s conflicts of interest. After she exposed questionable hirings and payments at a port and later a water district in another part of the state, both public entities underwent reforms. Jessica was born in Houston and graduated from Sam Houston State University.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Texas colleges will soon be able to pay their athletes
House Bill 126, which allows student athletes to receive a slice of the billions Texas colleges generate in revenue from their teams, now awaits the governor’s signature.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Bill to teach Texas kids the dangers of communism — but not fascism — clears the Legislature
The bill won bipartisan support despite efforts from multiple Democrats that would have also required students to learn about fascism and Nazism.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Texas House committee advances legislation that targets state’s universities
Senate bills that reduce the influence of faculties and restrict protests on college campuses were voted out of committee in a last-minute meeting Monday.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Faculty and students blast Texas House panel for limiting testimony on bill that targets state universities
The House’s higher education committee closed registration to testify on Senate Bill 37 less than half an hour after the hearing started. About 20 people said they didn’t get to address lawmakers.
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Texas Legislature 2025
After college students protested Israel-Hamas war, Texas Senate votes to restrict time, place and manner of future events
Sen. Brandon Creighton says the bill will prevent disruption. Critics say it walks back conservative lawmakers’ previous pledge to protect campus free speech.
Posted in
Higher Education
After immigration crackdown, international students in Texas self-censor to protect their education
Students told the Tribune they have deleted social media accounts, socialize less and steer clear of charged topics to avoid becoming targets of immigration authorities.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Texas Senate panel advances bill that would no longer allow undocumented students to pay in-state tuition
The bill would overturn a two-decade-old law allowing some undocumented college students to pay in-state tuition.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Texas House approves antisemitism bill in response to pro-Palestinian protests
The bill, which would require schools to use a definition of antisemitism when considering discipline for students, will soon head over to Abbott’s desk.
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Higher Education
Texas universities say Trump administration restored immigration status of some international students
More than 250 students in Texas had their status revoked in recent weeks. Despite the reversal, federal attorneys say they’re developing policies to resume terminations.