The Texas House Committee on Appropriations has approved an additional provision to House Bill 1006 that would prohibit public colleges and universities from using state funds for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices, programs, and activities. It was introduced by State Rep. Carl Tepper (R), who was elected to the Texas House of Representatives last November in House District 84, which includes Lubbock County and Texas Tech University.

In Texas, a dynamic collaboration between the state, clergy, and private sector is paving the way for transformative changes across various sectors. These partnerships aim to address some of the most pressing issues facing Texans, particularly in the Black community.

Recent reports have divulged that the Paycheck Protection Program funding, rolled out by the federal government during the COVID-19 pandemic, was abused and misappropriated. Around 15% of PPP loans had one or more indications of potential fraud.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) launched an environmental justice investigation into how the city of Houston handles unlawful dumpsite complaints and related service requests from Black and Latino residents in Northeast Houston.

Amazon recently purchased One Medical in a nearly $4 billion all-cash deal. The company plans to utilize the deal to expand its reach into the healthcare industry. One Medical is a primary care subscription service that promises patients “24/7 access to virtual care”.

On Christmas day of last year, NASA launched the James Webb Telescope from French Guiana, the largest space observatory ever built. Before the James Webb Telescope was the Hubble Telescope that was launched in 1990, but scientists wanted a new telescope to see farther into the universe.

Texas’ juvenile detention system is halting intake due to an immense loss of staff members which has led to fears it will be unable to ensure the safety of youth in the system. The Texas Juvenile Justice Department currently has 331 vacant positions for juvenile corrections officers and only 391 officers available to cover its facilities.

In addition, the impacts of the pandemic have widened opportunity and achievement gaps, hitting economically disadvantaged students and students of color the hardest. During the 2020-2021 school year, “test-score gaps between students in low-poverty and high-poverty elementary schools grew by approximately 20% in math (corresponding to 0.20 SDs) and 15% in reading (0.13 SDs)”.

Research shows that more than 80% of Texas has been facing drought conditions most of the year, which has led to crop loss, heat stress, limited feed availability for livestock, and increased risk of wildfires.