Tag: higher education

Houston Matters

State Goal: Get 60 Percent of Texans a College Degree By 2030

Posted on · Last month, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board adopted a new plan called 60x30TX. The overarching goal: to get 60 percent of Texans between 25 and 34 a college degree or certificate by 2030. The coordinating board says the goal focuses on 25 to 34-year-olds as an indicator of the economic future of the state […]

Full Show

Chris Bell Mayoral Candidate Interview: Tuesday’s show (August 11, 2015)

Posted on · Starting today, and for the next several Tuesdays on Houston Matters, we offer you a chance to speak directly with the major candidates running to be the next mayor of the city of Houston. We start on this edition with Chris Bell. He’s a former City Council Member and former U.S. Congressman. He’s also an […]

Houston Matters

Programs Help First-Generation College Students Succeed

Posted on · Almost one third of all U.S. undergraduate students are the first in their family to attend college. They're called first-generation students, and they face a lot of challenges to reach college. Then, once they get on campus, they're more likely to leave higher education. At the University of St. Thomas, there's a group to support […]

Full Show

The State of Houston’s Health: Tuesday’s Show (April 14, 2015)

Posted on · On this edition of Houston Matters, we continue our week-long series exploring "The State of Houston" with a conversation about Greater Houston's health and healthcare. We talk with News 88.7 Health and Science Reporter Carrie Feibel. Then: Houston's climate is so moderate that there are a number of growing seasons. So what should we — […]

Houston Matters

Rice President David Leebron Discusses the State of the University

Posted on · David Leebron has been President of Rice University, since 2004. (He’s just the seventh person to hold the post). Under his watch, Rice has seen significant increases in undergraduate enrollment, the launch of the Kinder Institute for Urban Research, new residential colleges, new buildings on campus, and visits from important figures ranging from former President […]

Full Show

Rice President and Grit: Tuesday’s Show (March 17, 2015)

Posted on · David Leebron has been President of Rice University, since 2004. (He’s just the seventh person to hold the post). Under his watch, Rice has seen significant increases in undergraduate enrollment, the launch of the Kinder Institute for Urban Research, new residential colleges, new buildings on campus, and visits from important figures ranging from former President […]

Houston Matters

Could Tuition Regulation Return to Texas Universities? And Lingering Concerns Over TDECU Stadium Contracts

Posted on · We talk with Benjamin Wermund, Higher Education Reporter from the Houston Chronicle, about a pair of stories in higher ed. First: we discuss Texas lawmakers’ efforts to weigh a tuition deregulation decision made more than a decade ago. Back in 2003, the Texas Legislature had to make some budget cuts. The effect of those cuts […]

Houston Matters

Should University Funding Be Tied to Performance Criteria?

Posted on · A new proposal from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board would tie part of funding for the state’s four-year universities to certain performance criteria, such as graduation rates. The incentives would only be a small portion of each institution’s overall state funding, and it would be similar to a model already used by Texas technical […]

Inside the Classroom

First Generation Student: ‘We Carry A Different Weight On Our Shoulders’

Posted on · Almost one third of all U.S. undergraduate students are the first in their family to attend college. They're called first generation students. They face a lot of challenges to reach college. And once they get on campus, they're more likely to leave higher education. At the University of St. Thomas, there’s group to support first generation students through college. Carina Tlapanco and Carlos Garcia are both member and are sophomores at UST. They talk about what it’s like to be “first gen.”

Houston Matters

A Different College Experience: No Semesters – All Online

Posted on · This weekend, nearly 900 students graduated from Western Governors University – Texas at a ceremony in Houston. WGU is geared toward non-traditional students – the average age of their students is 39. The online university offers an approach called competency-based education, where the focus is on what a student learns and not on fulfilling a […]

Houston Matters

Retiring Lone Star College Chancellor Discusses the Challenges Community Colleges Face

Posted on · Lone Star College‘s retiring chancellor, Dr. Richard Carpenter, joins Houston Matters to discuss his career in higher education and the challenges community colleges face. Dr. Carpenter became the youngest college president in the country when, at age 29, he became president of Somerset Community College in Kentucky. Since then his career in education took him […]