Politics & Policy
January 26, 2022
A Texas GOP Candidate’s New Claim: School Cafeteria Tables Are Being Lowered for “Furries”
The allegation isn’t true. But that isn’t stopping some politicians and right-wing activists from running with it.
Education
News & Politics
December 2, 2021
A Texas School District Banned My Book. Then Things Got Really Ugly.
I’ve been the target of censorship and vicious harassment, but my greatest worry is what this trend means for young people who rely on school libraries.
Arts & Entertainment
October 20, 2021
The ‘Southlake’ Podcast Is a Troubling Look at the Race Debate Tearing Apart a North Texas Suburb
I grew up in Southlake and was mostly blind to the racism all around me. The NBC series changed my perspective.
Politics & Policy
October 14, 2021
Critical Race Fury: The School Board Wars Are Getting Nasty in Texas
A loud minority of parents is making life miserable for Texas school officials—and shouting down the kids who speak in favor of lessons about the history and persistence of racial discrimination.
Education
September 2, 2021
Who Is Bud Brigham, the Man Behind UT’s “Liberty Institute”?
With taxpayer money now committed to the project, alongside private pledges, the oil billionaire’s push to create a conservative think tank on the Austin campus nears the goal line.
Politics & Policy
August 21, 2021
Opponents of “Critical Race Theory” Are Winning a Culture War in Montgomery County
School board meetings in Texas's most Republican large county have devolved into shouting matches about curriculum, leaving many teachers worried about the academic year ahead.
News & Politics
June 22, 2021
Inside the New Luxury Campus for Texas Education Leaders
Charles Butt’s Holdsworth Center offers leadership training—and much-needed respect—for superintendents, principals, and teachers at Texas public schools.
News & Politics
June 3, 2021
This Was a Horrible Way to Do School. But It Had Its Moments.
As the academic year ends, a rookie teacher looks back at his struggle to keep himself and his students afloat with nothing but a Zoom connection between them.
Politics & Policy
April 8, 2021
How the Digital Divide Is Failing Texas Students—And Why That Might Be About to Change
For rural families who lack reliable, high-speed internet, Zoom-style instruction is a luxury.
Sports
April 2, 2021
Behind the Scenes of UT’s ‘The Eyes of Texas’ Controversy
In interviews with dozens of football coaches, athletic department officials, university administrators, and current and former Longhorn players, we found that the athletes were largely left to navigate the turmoil by themselves.
Sports
March 7, 2021
A University of Texas Report Will Find That ‘The Eyes of Texas’ Has “No Racist Intent”
Texas Monthly has learned that the report, to be released Tuesday morning, attempts to offer a nuanced history of the school’s alma mater, which some have criticized for its origins in a minstrel show.
Health
December 22, 2020
San Antonio’s Bus Drivers Stepped Up During the Pandemic
Watch the video to follow Bobby Richardson and others as they deliver food, and support, to the families along their routes.
Politics & Policy
December 22, 2020
“You See So Much in Our Field You Wouldn’t Believe”: San Antonio School Bus Drivers Have Become Relief Workers
Food insecurity has soared during the pandemic, but Alamo City bus drivers came up with a solution: get food to the hungry.
News & Politics
November 25, 2020
For Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, Social Distancing Is Not an Option
How Texas grandfamilies navigated the school reopening process during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Texas History
November 6, 2020
Slavery Was Integral to Texas’s Transition From Republic to Statehood, but This Textbook Doesn’t Tell the Full Story
The version of Texas history taught in school is often anglicized and sanitized. We examine how one textbook falls short.
News & Politics
October 30, 2020
“It’s Going to Start a Civil War”: A Midland School Discards Its Confederate Name
Shedding Lee High’s offensive legacy may leave less money and public support to address issues of educational equity.
Texas History
October 29, 2020
How Leaders of the Texas Revolution Fought to Preserve Slavery
The version of Texas history taught in school is often anglicized and sanitized. We examine how one textbook falls short.
Being Texan
October 28, 2020
I’m Not Ashamed of My Stutter
Stuttering is finally in the spotlight, thanks to Joe Biden’s campaign and the announcement of a groundbreaking new University of Texas research center. But it’s always been part of my life.
Politics & Policy
September 14, 2020
#BlackAtSMU Tries to Pierce the “Bubble” of Southern Methodist University
In the spring, racial-justice activism flourished on the affluent campus. Now, as the fall semester kicks off, Black students and alumni are hoping to see change.
News & Politics
September 9, 2020
Wary of the Coronavirus Disrupting Education, Many Texas Parents Have Turned to Homeschooling
Some fear COVID-19 itself. Others are disappointed by plans for both in-person and virtual learning.
News & Politics
August 11, 2020
Many Students Couldn’t Connect to Online Classes in the Spring. Will This Fall Be Different?
Almost 2 million Texas children don’t have access to a computer or internet at home, according to a TEA report.
The National Podcast of Texas
July 23, 2020
With Students Returning to Campuses This Fall, Contact Tracing Is Key
Texas A&M epidemiologist Dr. Rebecca Fischer on the critical systems being put in place to maximize safety in an uncertain time.
News & Politics
July 21, 2020
Texas Kids Got COVID-19 at Summer Camp. Is School Next?
Camp Pine Cove adopted a number of safety precautions to prevent the coronavirus’s spread. It still came.
News & Politics
July 17, 2020
I’ve Spent Years Protecting My Students. When Classes Resume, Who Will Protect Me?
As Texas schools look to reopen this fall, I am unsure how to keep myself and the children I look after safe.
News & Politics
July 14, 2020
HISD Offered to Help Employees Create Wills. Teachers Were Not Happy.
The message arrives at a time when anxious Houston teachers are deciding whether to return to classrooms as COVID-19 surges.
Sports
June 17, 2020
The Damning History Behind UT’s ‘The Eyes of Texas’ Song
Student athletes wrote a letter urging officials to change the tune, which was first performed in a minstrel show.
Being Texan
June 12, 2020
14 Resources for Teaching Your Kids About Racial Injustice
Recommendations from the creators of Texas’s new African American Studies elective.
News & Politics
May 23, 2020
Dallas-Area High School Seniors Cope With a Semester—and Rites of Passage—Cut Short
Students have found themselves celebrating milestones like prom, graduation, and Eagle Scout ceremonies virtually because of the pandemic.
Food & Drink
May 22, 2020
Priya Krishna’s Quarantine Journal, Entry No. 12: Our DIY Graduation Ceremony
Fish tacos, a hip-hop ‘Pomp and Circumstance,' and a fake diploma: throwing a safe backyard party was a welcome, memorable diversion.
Arts & Entertainment
May 1, 2020
After Their Semester Was Cut Short, a University of Texas Class Worked to Stage a Shakespeare Production Over Zoom
Students in the beloved Shakespeare at Winedale course got creative with online theater, overcoming grainy visuals and bad Wi-Fi.
Being Texan
April 16, 2020
An Eighth Grader Battles Existential Gloom, Watches Netflix
The kids are alright, but they’re getting a little bored.
News & Politics
March 24, 2020
The Coronavirus Has Meant Campus Closures and Layoffs for Some Texas Undergrads
College students who have remained on campus for financial reasons have seen their friends leave and funds dry up.
True Crime
March 18, 2020
The Aftermath
In 1978, an eighth grader killed his teacher. After 20 months in a psychiatric facility, he was freed. His classmates still wonder: What really happened?
Politics & Policy
January 31, 2020
UT-Austin and Dell Announce $100 Million Partnership to Help Low-Income Students Graduate on Time
The initiative follows on the heels of last summer’s announcement that the university will cover tuition for some students.
News & Politics
June 25, 2019
Why Does Presidio Have One of the Best High School Rocketry Clubs in the Country?
The West Texas border town of Presidio is one of the poorest places in the state. So why does it have one of the best high school rocketry clubs in the country?
News & Politics
June 11, 2019
‘Say Yes to the Scary’: The Best Advice From 2019’s Texas College Commencement Addresses
We watched a host of graduation speeches from the state’s hundreds of universities, and these are the ones we found most inspiring.
The National Podcast of Texas
June 3, 2019
S. Craig Watkins: “Millennials Are in Pursuit of Opportunity and Dignity, Not Wealth and Celebrity”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, the UT media scholar and ‘Don’t Knock the Hustle’ author outlines how millennials are defying stereotypes and creating a “new innovation economy.”
Style & Design
May 29, 2019
A Transformative UTEP President’s Story, Told in Ten T-Shirts
Diana Natalicio has collected a few hundred UTEP tops over the decades—and has something to say about each of them.
Best Thing in Texas
May 21, 2019
The Best Thing in Texas: Austin Billionaire Robert Smith Pays Off Morehouse College Student Loans
The richest black man in America made a big announcement during his commencement speech to the graduating class of 2019.
Politics & Policy
May 4, 2019
More STAAR? The Texas Senate Proposes Even Higher-Stakes Testing for Students.
On Monday, the Senate passed a proposal to add four more writing tests and tie school funding directly to third-grade test results.
The National Podcast of Texas
April 29, 2019
UT Chancellor James B. Milliken: “Higher Education Is More Important Now Than It’s Ever Been in the History of the World”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, Milliken discusses the future of higher education, the recent college admissions scandal, and the possibility of a football game against A&M.
Politics & Policy
April 25, 2019
Dressing Down Parents at Houston’s Madison High School
No shower caps, bonnets, Do-rags, or saggy pants? The principal’s dress code for parents is about more than just school-appropriate attire.
The National Podcast of Texas
April 15, 2019
Texas A&M’s Michael K. Young: “I Never Want People to Think I Have All the Answers”
On The National Podcast of Texas, the university president talks college debt, diversity, the importance of science, and the strategy behind Jimbo Fisher’s salary.
Politics & Policy
April 1, 2019
State Senator José Menéndez: The STAAR Test Is Hurting Our Kids. We Need to Act Now.
An op-ed from the San Antonio senator and member of the Texas Senate Committee on Higher Education.
News & Politics
March 26, 2019
The University of Texas’s Scooter Speed Limit Is a Glimpse of the Future
The new rule uses geofencing technology to force vehicles on the college campus to slow down.
News & Politics
March 25, 2019
New Study Reaffirms That STAAR Reading Tests Are Not on Grade Level
Eight different readability formulas showed the test's reading portions are at a higher level of difficulty than appropriate for the grades they’re assessing.
News & Politics
March 18, 2019
Greg Abbott Orders Texas University Boards to Investigate Admissions Policies After Bribery Scandal
The University of Texas at Austin’s men’s tennis coach was among those accused of accepting bribes in a massive federal probe.
News & Politics
March 13, 2019
UT Has No Records Matching $500,000 “Donated” by Nonprofit Implicated in Bribery Scheme
Where’s the money?
Politics & Policy
March 13, 2019
Testing the Test: New Legislation Filed to Audit STAAR
More challenges emerge to Texas’s least favorite exam.
News & Politics
March 13, 2019
Remembering Bill Powers, a Man As Big As the University He Led
Professor emeritus David Anderson's tribute to the late UT president—his colleague, co-author, and friend for 40 years.