We’re excited to share we’ve got a second newsroom partnership in Texas. And, some Pittsburgh students have taken on risky private loans.

Deepening our coverage of Texas

We’re excited to announce that we’ve added a second partner newsroom in Texas: The Texas Tribune.

This collaboration will help strengthen coverage of Texas — a state of more than 1.4 million college students — where we are already working with El Paso Matters.

As part of our partnership with the Texas Tribune, they’ll be adding a second higher-ed reporter, this one focused on community colleges and the various pathways between education and careers. (More to come on that! And, learn more about the Tribune’s excellent education coverage here.)

And, we’ll work closely with Kate McGee, who has been covering higher ed at the Trib since 2020. We’ve been working informally with her for the last year or so, and are thrilled about what’s to come.

Kate has written some of the biggest higher ed stories of the summer. Here’s a recap of her most recent coverage:

• Kate’s bombshell reporting on Texas A&M University’s botched hiring of veteran journalist Kathleen McElroy led to the resignation of the university’s president and an interim dean. The university announced yesterday that it has reached a $1 million settlement with McElroy.

  • ICYMI: Facing political headwinds and what McElroy described as “DEI hysteria,” the university walked back its offer of a tenured position, whittling it down to a one-year teaching contract and a three-year offer to serve as the director of the journalism program. McElroy is a Black journalist and University of Texas at Austin professor who previously worked at the New York Times.

  • Want to see inside an administrator’s nightmare? Read the texts exchanged during the McElroy debacle. One of the most galling: Former university President M. Katherine Banks telling a now-former dean: “I assume all texts were deleted.”

• Kate continues to own the political interference beat: She reported that Texas A&M suspended a professor — opioids expert Joy Alzono — who was accused of criticizing Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick in a lecture. Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham initiated the complaint. This week, Kate had more details on Buckingham’s allegations, and the pressure that the saga is putting on faculty.

Pittsburghers turning to private loans

Emma Folts at PublicSource writes this week about the Pittsburgh students who are taking on private loan debt — it’s more common there than it is nationally.

Here’s one example: At Duquesne University, almost 1 in 4 of the university’s 2022 bachelor’s degree recipients took out private loans, Emma reports. And, they had the highest average debt load among the local universities.

That’s a concern, as private loans have fewer protections than federal ones. The interest rates can be higher, and there are fewer options for repayment, forgiveness, and discharge.

++ Congrats to Adam Echelman, our community colleges reporter at CalMatters! Adam received a fellowship from the Education Writers’ Association to dig into the California community colleges’ attempt to pivot to competency-based education.

Meet our HBCU fellows

We announced our six new fall fellows in the HBCU Student Journalism Network this week:

• Rosegalie Cineus, North Carolina A&T State University

• Kendal Manns, Alabama State University

• Tatyanna McCray, Florida A&M University

• Dejah Miles, Bowie State University

• Tamilore Oshikanlu, Howard University

• Chloe-Ryan Woolfolk, Norfolk State University

This paid reporting fellowship is a career launching pad for young Black journalists. Our fellows receive coaching and professional mentorship, create a network of peers around the country, and get select stories co-published in national outlets.

++ If you’re a current HBCU student, apply for our spring cohort! And, read FAQs about the program.

Elsewhere on Open Campus

From College Inside: Kwaneta Harris has spent years in solitary confinement in Texas. She’s dealt with crushing isolation and oppressive heat. She has disruptive neighbors who are struggling with mental health issues. She still finds time to read. Read about her experience, in her own words. (We co-published her essay with Slate yesterday.)

From Cleveland: Amy Morona went to an event at the Cleveland zoo where colleges gathered to talk to potential adult students. More adults with bachelor’s degrees would bolster the city’s workforce and colleges’ bottom lines.

From Tampa Bay: New College of Florida announced three finalists for its top job, including interim president Richard Corcoran.

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