Politics and Protests
Trying Again: UT college students bought concerned with the state legislative session by testifying to committees and interning with congressional places of work. UT’s scholar advocacy program, Spend money on Texas, and different scholar organizations have targeted on reproductive rights, professor tenure and voting entry as these points come underneath some threat.
Trying Ahead: State lawmakers will vote on Senate Invoice 18, which might finish tenure alternatives at public Texas universities and will probably affect the standard of school at UT. The legislature can also be contemplating a invoice that ends funding for range, fairness and inclusion practices in larger schooling.
Campus
Trying Again: Pupil condo complicated Noble 2500 opened in January after months of delays, throughout which residents needed to discover their very own housing or stay within the Moxy lodge.
Trying Ahead: The College is launching a brand new scholarship program to alleviate as much as $1,800 of housing prices for first-year dormitory residents within the 2023-24 educational yr.
Analysis
Trying Again: NASA chosen the UT Excessive Decision X-Ray Computed Tomography Facility as an inaugural facility for planetary science analysis, offering funding to the lab and selling nationwide collaboration with different scientists.
Trying Ahead: The self-driving rideshare firm Cruise will proceed to develop its providers into Austin, making touring by automobile extra environment friendly whereas sustaining secure circumstances for pedestrians and cyclists — a priority for some who fear concerning the security of automated autos.
Pupil Authorities
Trying Again: The Dean of College students made vital adjustments to UT Senate bylaws that affect recruiting efforts and the laws college students can suggest. The adjustments raised objections from scholar leaders who advocated for his or her inclusion on these main selections.
Trying Ahead: Pupil Authorities will proceed to steer initiatives to fight the Texas legislature’s anti-DEI efforts, proposing laws exhibiting their dedication to sustaining DEI on campus.
Crime & Public Security
Trying Again: Austin Police Division officer shortages prompted the deployment of Division of Public Security state troopers, a call made with out metropolis council session resulting in some group concern over if their authority differs.
Trying Ahead: Austin residents will vote between two police oversight ordinances within the upcoming Could 6 election; Prop A expands the Workplace of Police Oversight, which oversees Austin Police Division conduct, whereas Prop B limits it.
Metro
Trying Again: In February, the Austin Metropolis Council introduced a brand new partnership with native universities, together with UT, that may discover and examine potential options to the reasonably priced scholar housing scarcity round college campuses.
Trying Ahead: The ultimate design for Mission Join will likely be finalized in Could by the Austin Metropolis Council. Upon approval and as soon as constructed, the brand new line would join Downtown Austin to high-traveled spots within the metropolis, together with UT campus.