Editor’s note: A 30 column is a chance for departing permanent staff to say farewell and reflect on their time spent in The Daily Texan’s basement office. The term comes from the old typesetting...
Out of UT-Austin’s 100 highest paid employees, only 20 are women, according to data from the Texas Tribune Government Salaries Explorer.
In November, Chancellor William McRaven announced...
A Texas Senate committee voted Monday to send the House’s open carry bill to the Senate floor for consideration.
HB 910, which Rep. Larry Phillips (R-Sherman) authored, would allow licensed gun...
Attorney General Ken Paxton said UT System regents do not have the authority to limit information requests Tuesday, in response to an appeal to Paxton by Regent Wallace Hall last month.
“Unless...
On this week's episode of the Daily Texan NewsCast we discuss Gregory Fenves', the next president of UT Austin, goals as president, an update on regent Wallace Hall's records requests, proposed...
UTUnrated, a Snapchat account that receives hundreds of submissions from University students, publishes a daily Snapchat “story” that includes, on an average day, nude photos, videos of people...
Hundreds of students across campus working on green fee-funded projects have helped reroute over 27,000 pounds of UT’s compost from landfills, plant over 75,000 seedlings and grow about 250 pounds...
UT’s portion of the Permanent University Fund (PUF) might be cut in half to help fund The University of Houston.
Last week, Rep. Sylvester Turner (D-Houston) laid out a bill and constitutional...
On this week's episode of the Daily Texan NewsCast we discuss the universities plans to expand into East Campus, a bill in the Texas Legislature to limit tuition increases, the Longhorn Band coach...
The Texas Senate voted to place certain limits on Texas public universities’ tuition rates Thursday.
The bill, authored by Sen. Kel Seliger (R-Amarillo), would set certain “performance measures”...
On Sundays, social work senior Denisse Calderon wakes up and visits the Austin State Supported Living Center (ASSLC) to meet with residents and accompany them to a church service.
“My work...
Buying a beer could be as easy as pressing a button after this legislative session.
Rep. Richard Raymond (D-Laredo) is working to legalize the sale of alcohol in vending machines at certain establishments...
State lawmakers are working to set state guidelines for how universities handle sexual assault.
The House gave initial approval Monday to a bill requiring universities to set definitions of sexual...
The Senate State Affairs Committee heard a bill Monday that, if passed, would remove abortion coverage from the Affordable Care Act.
The Affordable Care Act, often referred to as “Obamacare,”...
On this week's episode of the Daily Texan NewsCast we discuss the Student Government assembly's vote against a divestment resolution, Wallace Hall's appeal to the Attorney General, the results...
Lawmakers are working to increase the number of off-campus work-study opportunities in the private sector.
On Wednesday, the House Higher Education Committee heard HB 2365, which, if passed, would expand...
When liberal arts sophomore Madi Maino, originally from Virginia, prepared to move to Texas for college, her image of the state boiled down to one thing: a cowboy wearing boots and a hat.
“When...
For the next round of elections, voters might be able to cast their ballots with a cell phone in hand.
Current state law prohibits voters from having their cell phones within 100 feet of the voting...
The open carry of handguns state-wide is one step closer to being legal.
The Texas House gave initial approval to its version of the open carry bill, HB 910, on Friday. The Texas Senate approved its...
On this week's episode of the Daily Texan NewsCast we discuss President Powers' record on improving graduation rates, the Jefferson Davis statue being vandalized, potential changes to the Hazlewood...
The Senate Committee on Higher Education heard bills Wednesday to limit tuition increases in higher ed.
In 2003, legislators deregulated tuition, granting universities control of tuition rates. Since...
Last fiscal year, UT excused about $9.7 million in tuition revenue for 1,034 student veterans and their families as part of the Texas Hazlewood Act tuition exemption, according to a Legislative Budget...
The Texas House’s open carry bill, originally scheduled for a review on the House floor Tuesday, was delayed in the Senate because of a technical error.
The bill, which Rep. Larry Phillips (R-Sherman)...
Authors of the original Texas Dream Act, HB 1403, gathered at the Capitol on Monday to advocate for the policy — originally passed in 2001.
The bill, which is at risk of removal this session,...
With signs reading “Don’t Indiana My Texas” in hand, more than 100 people rallied outside the Capitol for Freedom Advocacy Day to lobby against certain anti-LGBT measures proposed this...
When radio-televisionfilm sophomore Holly Cook first came to UT, she had never taken a formal health or sex education course. Cook, who attended Clear Lake High School in Houston, learned what she knew...
On this week's episode of the Daily Texan NewsCast we discuss a bill to repeal the Texas Dream Act, a bomb threat at the Butler School of Music, student organizations advocacy for divestment related...
Uber and Lyft, ride-sharing companies popular with many UT students, may soon be regulated on a state level in a shift from the current policy.
Lawmakers on the House transportation committee heard...
The Friar Society, the oldest honor society on campus, selected music professor Robert Duke as the recipient of the Friar Centennial Teaching Fellowship (FCTF) on Wednesday.
Each school year,...
Update: After over 13 hours of an emotional Senate hearing, the subcommittee on border security voted 2 to 1 to send the committee substitute for SB 1819 to full committee for review, with the recommendation...
Bass Concert Hall and Texas Performing Arts Center were evacuated Monday after a bomb threat was reported to the Butler School of Music.
UTPD responded to a call that reported a bomb threat in...
On this week's episode of the Daily Texan NewsCast we discuss Shaka Smart as the Longhorns' new head basketball coach, the results of the Wallace Hall grand jury, and a recap of last weekend's...
Under Texas’ current legal system, 17-year-olds accused of crimes are usually tried as adults — but lawmakers are working to raise that age by one year.
On Wednesday, the Juvenile Justice...
The Senate is set to hear a bill that would provide UT-Austin with $67,500,000 for renovations at Welch Hall as well as construction on other facilities within the UT System and across the state.
On...
The Texas House of Representatives started its discussion Tuesday of an approximately $210 billion budget.
At print time, the discussion over HB 1, which lays out the House’s proposed state budget,...
Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer (D-San Antonio) submitted an amendment to the House budget which would place university organizations, including fraternities, under close watch.
The amendment —...
Six months after having its budget gutted, the Texas Memorial Museum is improving its financial situation, and attendance is slowly rising.
In September 2014, the University pulled funding for...
On this week's episode of the Daily Texan NewsCast we discuss Greg Fenves who has been named the sole finalist for the position of UT Austin President, campus-carry, roundup, and SG advocating the...
One Texas legislator is aiming to limit citizens’ ability to record police officers from close distances, but the bill has generated significant opposition.
Thursday, Rep. Jason Villalba...
The House gave preliminary approval Wednesday to a statewide ban on texting while driving.
HB 80 was approved with a 102–40 vote. The bill would ban text-based communication while driving in the...
Rep. Helen Giddings (D-DeSoto) filed a bill, HB 700, that would eliminate the state’s B-On-Time student loan program.
The B-On-Time loan is a state forgivable loan funded by 5 percent of student...
Over spring break, the Texas Senate gave final approval to SB 11, a campus carry bill for public universities. In response, members of the UT Student Government said they will intensify lobbying efforts...
The Texas Senate gave a final vote in favor of campus carry, a bill that would allow concealed handguns to be carried in college and university buildings.
No debate preceded the passage of Senate...
The Texas Senate gave inital approval to its campus carry bill after it was brought to the floor Wednesday for its second reading.
Campus carry would allow licensed handgun owners over 21...
College students and professors, including several from UT, attended a House committee hearing Tuesday to express opposition to campus carry.
Grant Willson, a UT chemistry and chemical engineering...
Update (2:59 p.m.): The House Homeland Security and Public Safety committee left bills regarding campus carry and open carry pending in committee Tuesday.
Guests attended a public hearing...
More than 900 bills were filed Friday, as lawmakers scrambled to get their final pieces of legislation submitted before the 6 p.m. filing deadline.
In total, over 6,300 bills were...
More than 900 bills were filed Friday, as lawmakers scrambled to get their final pieces of legislation submitted before the 6 p.m. filing deadline.
In total, over 6,300 bills were...
On this week's episode of the Daily Texan NewsCast we discuss Xavier Rotnofsky and Rohit Mandalapu winning the Student Government executive alliance election, a religious freedom bill, SAE, the new...
As last-minute bills rush in before the 6:00 p.m. filing deadline Friday, House and Senate committee chairs said they consider higher education funding to be this session’s legislative priority.
Members...
The Senate Committee on Higher Education left a bill regarding board of regent operations pending in committee to adjust the language of the bill.
SB 177, which Sen. Kel Seliger (R–Amarillo) filed,...
Texas Rep. Dan Flynn (R-Canton) wants daylight saving time removed in the state.
Flynn filed a bill in November calling for legislators to end daylight saving time, and the public hearing for his bill is...
Executive alliance candidates Xavier Rotnofsky and Rohit Mandalapu used kids to gain votes Tuesday — baby goats, that is.
Hundreds of students lined up at the Student Activity Center to see the...
Rep. Molly White (R-Belton) filed a bill that, if passed, would allow private business owners to refuse business to people based on the owner’s religion or on “conscientious grounds.”
HB...
State Rep. Molly White (R-Belton) filed a bill that, if passed, would allow private business owners to refuse business to people based on the owner's religion or on “conscientious grounds.”
HB...
March 6, 2015: On this week's episode of the Daily Texan NewsCast we discuss the Student Government Executive Alliance runoff, a Texas marijuana bill, the UT Austin presidential search, and the...
In 2014, the University Writing Center provided 11,105 one-on-one writing consultations for undergraduate students in only 1,500 square-feet of space.
The center’s tight quarters are...
The Texas Senate gained a new member Wednesday as Sen. José Menéndez took over Leticia Van de Putte‘s seat representing San Antonio.
Menéndez, a House member representing...
Rep. David Simpson (R-Longview) filed a bill Monday to legalize marijuana in Texas.
If passed, HB 2165 would repeal offenses related to possessing, selling and growing marijuana in Texas. The bill retracts...
The four or five required on the Advanced Placement tests to claim college credit will be reduced to a three if a bill that Rep. John Zerwas (R-Richmond) proposed in the Texas House passes.
If...
A bill proposed Monday would set new procedures for border security, including outbound checkpoints along the border.
Texas legislators proposed a multifaceted bill, HB 11, that would permit the...
February 27th, 2015: On this week's episode of the Daily Texan NewsCast we discuss University Democrat's Student Government endorsements, developments in the ongoing campus carry debate, and...
One week before Rodney Reed’s scheduled execution, students and community members gathered on the steps of the Tower to hold a vigil for Reed and to protest Texas’ judicial system.
Students...
The Senate Committee on Nominations questioned Gov. Greg Abbott’s three regent appointees for more than five hours about admissions, open records requests, and other issues that have prompted conflict...
The UT System estimates “campus carry,” if passed, would cost UT campuses $39 million in additional security measures, but a UT-Austin fiscal note said the bill would have no significant fiscal...
Bills proposed in the state House and Senate would require a class’s median or average grade be posted alongside a student’s individual score.
Rep. Scott Turner (R-Frisco), the...
State Sen. Leticia Van de Putte (D-San Antonio) stepped down Friday after 24 years in the senate.
Van de Putte announced she would leave the Capitol in January, after loosing the race for lieutenant...
The Texas Supreme Court’s stay on the state’s same-sex marriage ban may remain in effect until the expected Supreme Court ruling this summer, according to Osler McCarthy, staff attorney for...
Two UT deans will step down at the end of the semester, according to a blog post released Friday by UT President William Powers Jr.
Robert Hutchings, dean of the LBJ School of Public Affairs, and...
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton petitioned the state Supreme Court on Friday to declare a single marriage license issued to one same-sex couple invalid.
Paxton asked the Supreme Court...
February 20, 2015: In the first Daily Texan NewsCast of the semester Eleanor Dearman and Samantha Ketterer discuss the first same sex marriage in Texas, Student Government elections, a campus-wide blackout,...
Gov. Greg Abbott made higher education research an “emergency item” in his first State of the State address Tuesday.
In his speech at the Capitol, Abbott urged lawmakers to prioritize...
The Texas Legislature is working to redefine the student regent application process, requiring student regents to apply through student government before applying to the governor’s office.
If...
Despite student opposition, the State Affairs committee voted to recommend that the Texas Senate pass SB 11, a bill allowing students, faculty and staff to carry concealed handguns on campus, with a vote...
Campus carry, in-state tuition for undocumented students and tuition regulation were major points of focus during an on-campus interview with House Speaker Joe Straus.
At the talk, Straus stressed...
Hundreds of rally attendees chanted, “Sí, se puede,” or “Yes, we can,” at the Capitol on Wednesday to support a pro-immigration legislative agenda.
Legislators, including...
Texas legislators and UT System administrators are squaring off over the role of the legislature in setting — or limiting — University tuition rates.
Six separate bills in favor of...
An exhibit honoring Barbara Jordan, civil rights activist, congresswoman and former UT professor, opened at the Capitol on Tuesday to chronicle her life and work.
The exhibit, which will be open...
In Texas, unpaid interns do not have legal protection against sexual harassment in the workplace.
Rep. Senfronia Thompson (D-Houston) filed HB1151, which would work to provide unpaid interns with sexual...
UT and Texas A&M set aside a long-standing rivalry and worked together on the seventh Orange & Maroon Legislative Day to advocate for the schools’ common legislative priorities, such as state...
Freezing rain did not stop hundreds of Texas community college students, many of whom hope to transfer to four-year institutions like UT, from meeting outside of the Capitol to discuss their policy priorities...
Gov. Greg Abbott declared Feb. 2 “Chris Kyle Day” in Texas to honor the decorated ex-Navy SEAL sniper killed last February. Abbott and legislators gathered at the Capitol on Monday to sign...
Students of all races, genders, cultures and religions tried on hijabs — traditional headscarves worn by Muslim women — for an event the Muslim Students’ Association (MSA) held Monday...
State Rep. Molly White (R-Belton) drew criticism Thursday after asking Muslim visitors to the Capitol to “renounce Islamic terrorist groups” during an event UT students helped plan.
About...
Former Governor Rick Perry said his recent indictment will not derail the possibility of a 2016 presidential campaign.
Perry discussed his future plans at a press conference Wednesday, which he...
State legislators in the House and Senate filed identical bills Monday that would allow University students, faculty and staff with proper licenses to carry concealed handguns in campus buildings.
Under...
Members of the Global Embassy of Activists for Peace unveiled a plaque honoring Holocaust survivors in the Texas Capitol on Monday.
Sen. Eddie Lucio Jr. (D-Brownsville) and his son, Rep....
In a continued effort to prioritize higher education in this year’s legislative session, a group of six legislators are working to provide a tax exemption on certain textbooks.
Rep. Mary...
Four Texas lawmakers are making voter turnout among college students a priority by proposing bills that would make university-issued ID cards an acceptable form of voter ID.
The bills, filed in both...
On his second full day in office Thursday, Gov. Greg Abbott appointed two new members to the UT System Board of Regents and reappointed Vice Chairman Steve Hicks for another term.
Abbott’s two...
The Texas Senate adopted a three-fifths rule, lowering the number of senators required to bring a bill to the floor for debate, after a heated discussion Wednesday. The procedural shift will effectively...
As Texans from across the state gathered at the Capitol to watch Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s inauguration Tuesday, the duo emphasized their goals of limiting government involvement...
Texans from across the state gathered in front of the Capitol Building Tuesday to watch Greg Abbott and Dan Patrick take their oaths of office as Governor and Lieutenant Governor of Texas. Abbott...
Hundreds of UT students will work alongside state lawmakers in the 84th Texas Legislature to craft policies the lawmakers will propose during the 140-day legislative session.
“Have you ever...
With five days left in office, Gov. Rick Perry, the longest-serving governor in Texas history, delivered a farewell speech Thursday before a joint session of the Legislature.
Perry credited the private...
Texas lawmakers returned to work Tuesday to commence the 84th legislative session and take their oaths of office. Amid the usual pomp and circumstance of opening day ceremonies, the House floor voted on...
The Texas Legislature opens its 84th 140-day session Tuesday at noon. Here are a few bills related to higher education that, if passed, could affect university students statewide.
SB No. 22:
Introduced...
President William Powers Jr. and other University representatives announced Monday the formation of the Center for Sports Leadership and Innovation.
Directed by Daron Roberts, a lecturer in...
The College of Natural Sciences will be offering about one-third fewer courses in summer 2015, according to the college's dean, Linda Hicke.
Last week, the Office of the Executive...
