What made the session so positive? Increases in formula funding provided a stable base of state support essential for public universities to plan for and serve the increasing numbers of Texans seeking high quality education.
Creating a Texas Tech veterinary school is a no-brainer, and should be a cut-and-dried funding issue. It has been debated long enough and, in that time, the need for the veterinary school has only grown greater. The Legislature should approve the funding, with no strings attached.
As the 86th Legislature advances its proposed two-year state budget, we have a historic opportunity to ensure that state investments in performance-based funding match the successes realized by Texas community colleges.
School finance reform will help ensure that the next generation of Texans receiving the high-quality education they deserve to compete and succeed includes all Texans.
Texas’ future is tied to the strength of its institutions of higher learning. For Texas to remain competitive and innovative in this knowledge-based economy, every educational opportunity must be open to our students.
It is troubling to know that there are some who propose repealing the top 10 percent plan this legislative session. Repealing the program would limit academic and life opportunities for some of the most deserving Texas students. A repeal is simply inconsistent with our values as Texans and how we reward the people who demonstrate those values.
What were the University of Texas System regents thinking when they selected Heather Wilson as the only finalist for President of the University of Texas-El Paso?
Homeless and former foster care students have surfaced on the radars of Texas legislators this year, and Texas institutions of higher education should pay close attention.
If we want Texas to grow in a way that enhances our prosperity, advances our quality of life and preserves the things that make our state special, we will need take full advantage of the talented people residing within our borders. Higher education must play a leading role.
As dual credit expands, we simply must find a way for analysis to keep pace with this movement. My greatest concern is for students who take dual credit courses in high school with the best of intentions — only to find out that they are not adequately prepared, academically or developmentally, for the rigor and social challenges that await them after high school.
Whatever the basis of the concept of academic freedom and regardless of whether in the strict sense it applies only to public institutions of higher education or resides with individual professors, it is disquieting that the regents and the president of UT Austin would now, in the court system, question its very existence.
While the benefits of well-designed and well-implemented dual credit programs were well recognized, little was known about how the programs were changing during this rapid expansion and what differences those changes were making for student learning. Overall, our study suggests that dual credit education has been a benefit to the state of Texas.
Studies confirm the positive gains made by students who have access to college credit in high school. Data reveal that students’ exposure to even one dual credit course improves student outcomes in college. These gains aren’t difficult to find, especially if you look closely at the outcomes data or hear the stories from students who have personally experienced dual credit.
For educators like me, academic freedom means the right to speak freely in a classroom, to say things that elsewhere are not open for discussion. Our constitutional freedom of speech is often legally limited in private workplaces. But not in public universities, until now: Lawyers representing UT-Austin claim that professors don’t have any constitutional right to academic freedom.
Last month, a study made headlines with negative news about a popular program known as dual credit. In fact, the preponderance of scientific evidence supports dual credit.
In 2015, after one of the most storied and accomplished military careers in memory, McRaven took on one of the most challenging and important jobs in Texas, chancellor of the University of Texas System. For the last 3 1/2 years, he has performed in a consistently outstanding manner.
It's a sad day for universities across Texas whenever bullies prevent speech and a variety of views from being presented. It’s even sadder when administrators of these universities silence free speech in order to appease disruptive extremists. Unfortunately, that is exactly what happened on the campus of Texas Southern University earlier this week.
To date, no Texas university has been directly implicated in the federal investigation of college basketball recruiting; Oklahoma State is the closest university to the state embroiled in the scandal. Yet, the reverberations from this case will affect every major college basketball program in Texas.
Just over 70,000 of the Texans in eighth grade in 2006 have earned degrees from Texas colleges. But nearly 100,000 people move or immigrate to Texas each year with college credentials. We are importing talent when we should be doing a better job cultivating it here at home.
All in all, UT-Austin is a "university of the first class," and the UT System does rather well considering its level of funding, its size and complexity and its many well-funded competitors.
A new exhibit offers no acknowledgement of what confederate officer, cattleman, banker and longtime UT benefactor George Littlefield intended when he commissioned this statue and five others on campus: to celebrate white supremacy and embed it into the very landscape of UT-Austin.
Once students pass exams that place the college-ready flag next to their names in state computer systems, they are allowed to walk into any two-year Texas community college after graduation, or four-year college program into which they are accepted and start taking credit-bearing coursework towards degree or certificates. What happens if they don’t have that flag?
Maintaining a strong nurse pipeline to keep pace with an aging population, nurse retirements and our rapidly growing Central Texas communities is an ongoing challenge. The Texas Center for Nursing Workforce Studies projects the demand for registered nurses in the state could exceed supply by almost 60,000 by 2030.
It is natural for many to advocate leaving Muny and the tract alone. We would agree completely if the challenges of fulfilling UT’s mission were different. Unfortunately, things have changed a great deal even in the last 10 years: UT now finds itself in a city suffering an affordability crisis even as the Legislature continues to cut financial support to the university.
As the Legislature considers taking the Lions Municipal Golf Course away from the University of Texas, we have heard many voices in the debate: neighbors, golfers, historians, university administrators, and, of course, politicians. But so far, neither the lawmakers who are facing a vote nor the journalists who are facing a deadline have sought the opinion of the one group that would be most directly affected by a change at the West Austin property: UT students.
As long as Texas believes that educational opportunity is essential to our state's freedom and prosperity and Historically Black Universities such as Prairie View A&M University are willing to evolve and respond to the call of liberty and opportunity with a quality academic product, the HBU concept is relevant and necessary.
Contrary to the outcome of the 2016 presidential election and the presidential cabinet nominations that followed, qualifications matter. Public service may be a calling, but good policy is made from more than civic virtue. Leaders need training.
A collaborative, thoughtful approach to dual-credit expansion will better prepare students either for further academic work at higher education institutions or for the workforce.
America does not produce college graduates who are ready for work, independence or advancing their community — in other words, life.
As the appalling details of the Baylor University sexual assault scandal come to light, Ken Starr has learned that the path to successfully completing a university presidency is long and arduous.
By now, most Texans are familiar with the reports of Baylor University’s mishandling of sexual assaults in the past few years — the secrets, the lack of reports, the intimidation, the retaliation, the lawsuits — all at the expense of survivors. As a representative of a state coalition compromised of over 80 programs across Texas seeking to combat sexual violence, I find what Baylor did unacceptable and downright wrong.
As the Texas government forces Texas families to pick up more and more of the tab for higher education, some in the Capitol are trying to eliminate much-needed tuition assistance.
After a barrage of negative press and finger-pointing — and with little institutional pushback — the Baylor Board of Regents appear to have taken a page right out of Leviticus as rumors swirl about efforts to remove Kenneth Starr as president.
To reach Texas' ambitious college graduation goals, our cities, counties, school districts and two-year and four-year college systems will have to make radical changes in the way we share information and collaborate to guide students through their college years.
If lawmakers want to reduce college tuition costs, we must first look to ourselves.
I respect the University of Texas and Texas A&M University, but to assume those universities are the best choice for every one of our state’s best and brightest high school students is misguided.
If you were to believe the sound bites about tuition at public institutions in Texas, it would be easy to assume higher education is an unchecked behemoth that wastes money and wreaks havoc on students. While it is certainly true that there is room for improved efficiency, it is time to take a clear-eyed look at the facts.
While any new allocation of state resources for higher education is a welcome departure from the broad erosion of financial support for public universities across the nation, Governor Abbott's new initiative misses the point.
Unless our public universities are faced with the necessity of reducing costs, they will never be appropriately motivated to combat wasteful spending, address administrative bloat or find new ways to keep college affordable for students.
The discourse that began after a race-related incident this week on the Texas A&M campus is not new to the state or the country. It is a road that has been traveled before and lingers to be frequented again.
Historically, accolades and attention for major scientific research have gone to the two coasts in the United States, with big-name universities on the East Coast and federal research labs on the West attracting the majority of research funding and resources. But Texas is now emerging as the Third Coast of scientific research and innovation
For everyone in Texas, the diversity in our university classrooms is a matter of justice, prosperity and maybe even survival.
We must work toward creating a college campus climate where women do not feel that lethal force is their only option for protecting themselves.
Feminists should be the biggest proponents of campus carry because denying women the right to protect themselves negates the intent of their movement.
The renewed campus carry debate at the University of Texas at Austin is just the latest example of the cognitive disconnect demonstrated by gun-control activists in Texas who have no problem seeing a movie at a theater, shopping at a mall or worshipping at a church that allows concealed carry — but are absolutely terrified of stepping into a classroom that does the same.
A disheartening report on sexual assault on college campuses shows what advocacy professionals and service providers already know: Incidents are high and reporting rates are low, despite greater awareness efforts.
How higher education evolves and adapts to meet the needs of today’s diverse student population will be critical to Texas’ long-term ability to satisfy workforce demands and remain prosperous and competitive.
Where will Texas find its next generation of engineers? As college costs and employer expectations rise, part of the solution lies in serving students in their communities.
Texas lawmakers made a firm commitment to higher education at a time when other states are struggling to keep their colleges and universities open, accessible and affordable.
As chancellors of the two largest higher education systems in Texas, we’re strongly committed to maintaining tuition benefits for veterans. But the current system is unsustainable.
To address changing workforce needs and ballooning higher education costs, Texas should open up more pathways to a four-year degree.
An explosive new report should give the U.S. Supreme Court yet another reason to again review the use of race in the University of Texas at Austin's admissions policy.
President Obama's community college proposal isn't perfect, but the status quo isn't cutting it for students in Texas. It may just be our least bad alternative.
The attention on the University of Texas System will continue into the New Year, and for good reason. That's why governance of the system will be such a critical issue for Texas this year.
Attending college in Texas shouldn't be a luxury afforded only to the wealthy or those willing to take on massive student loan debt. But that's what's happened in our state since we deregulated tuition.
I deeply understand the struggles that many first-generation students face when they arrive at college. That's why I've returned to the University of Texas at Austin.
Too many students today think innovations in higher education, like online courses, are meant to make learning easy. Nothing could be further from the truth. Students must live up to their end of the bargain.
By fostering a culture of accountability that treats victims' experiences as crimes rather than misunderstandings, the University of Texas at Austin is setting a strong example.
I implore anyone else with an ounce of burnt-orange pride to join me in resisting calls for University of Texas at Austin President Bill Powers' ouster. Support the man who has supported UT so well over the past eight years.
University of Texas at Austin President Bill Powers has been actively insubordinate on the job amid years of strife with the UT System. It's time for him to step aside.
My work at the University of Texas at Austin has helped draw attention to why poor students struggle to graduate from college. But there's another reason why many students don't graduate: the grading curve. Let's get rid of it.
The “A” and the “M” in our university system's name are symbolic links to our history. But as our reputation shifts, the land-grant mission we started with must be redefined.
Anyone who follows the news is aware of the strong debates that have occurred during my tenure. This job is not for the timid.
Wallace Hall's continued presence on the UT board of regents will further complicate the university system's efforts to move beyond this toxic environment, particularly as it seeks to fill the role of chancellor.
I know what it's like to have to stand up and fight against the political establishment. Wallace Hall has stood up for transparency and accountability, and he shouldn't back down.
