21 lives lost: Uvalde victims were a cross-section of a small, mostly Latino town in South Texas
Loving children and beloved educators were killed at Robb Elementary School on May 24 in the deadliest school shooting in Texas history. Full Story
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Brooke Park
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Brooke Park is a junior at the University of Texas at Austin and was a spring 2022 reporting fellow until May 2022. She has worked at Community Impact Newspaper, Austin American-Statesman and held multiple positions at The Daily Texan, including news editor.
Past Contributions
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![Photographs of the 21 victims of the Uvalde Elementary School shooting.]()
Credit: Texas Tribune Staff -
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz is the target of a bar association complaint over his role in undermining the 2020 election results
A group of lawyers says Cruz played an outsized role in the efforts to void the 2020 election results and accuses him of repeatedly making false claims about voter fraud. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz leaves after a press conference with organizers of the People’s Convoy near the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on March 10, 2022.]()
Credit: Eric Lee for The Texas Tribune -
Texas librarians face harassment as they navigate book bans
As communities and school districts push for book bans, some Texas librarians are nearing their breaking point. Full Story
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![Suzette Baker was given a list of books to take off the shelves of Kingsland Library in Llano County. Baker refused, and she was fired.]()
Credit: Lauren Witte/The Texas Tribune -
Carlos Hernandez tapped as Sul Ross State University interim president
After shifting from his role as Sam Houston State University’s chief financial officer, Hernandez will focus on student recruitment and bolstering academic programs at Sul Ross to combat declining enrollment. Full Story
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![Sul Ross students Eli Gonzalez, Kyle Villalon and Mitchell Martinez, walk across campus at Sul Ross State University in Alpine on Nov. 22, 2021.]()
Credit: Sarah M. Vasquez for The Texas Tribune -
Residents sue Llano County officials, library director, board members to end book bans
A federal lawsuit claims Llano County public officials’ efforts to remove library books are a coordinated censorship campaign. Full Story
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![The Young Adults section at the Llano Public Library on Monday, Dec. 14, 2021 in Llano.]()
Credit: Sergio Flores for The Texas Tribune -
The stories behind the Texans lost to COVID-19
Since vaccines became widely available for Texans 12 and older last May, about 82% of Texas’ COVID-19 deaths were among the unvaccinated. Full Story
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![Laurena Ellis lost her granddaughter, Sha’Niyah McGee, to COVID-19 when she was 16 years old in September of 2021.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Texas sues to prevent losing federal funds over its investigations of trans children’s families
Texas is worried it could lose over a billion dollars in federal funding over Gov. Greg Abbott’s directive requiring medical professionals to report gender-affirming care for minors as child abuse. Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton.]()
Credit: USA TODAY NETWORK via Reuters -
Texas students push back against book bans for censoring LGBTQ, racial justice issues
Students are forming banned-book clubs and distribution drives to contest restrictions that focus mostly on LGBTQ and racial themes. Full Story
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![Alyssa Hoy listens to another club member during the meeting in Vandegrift High Scool's library on Wednesday, Mar. 2, 2022. They discussed the banned book "Out of Darkness" by Ashley Hope Pérez and what they learned from the book's events and themes.]()
Credit: Lauren Witte/The Texas Tribune -
Attorney General Ken Paxton appeals restraining order that blocked state agency from investigating trans teen’s family
A Texas judge was scheduled to consider a statewide injunction on investigations of parents over obtaining gender-affirming care. The appeal now puts the hearing on hold. Full Story
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![People gather in front of the Texas Capitol during a protest for transgender kids' rights in Austin on Tuesday, March 1, 2022.]()
Credit: Lauren Witte/The Texas Tribune -
Texas voters will decide whether to lower some property tax bills in May election
If two propositions pass, the state will increase school funding to make up for revenues lost from a decrease in property taxes. Full Story
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![A student takes notes in Norman Gomez's third-grade class at Linder Elementary School in Austin on Jan. 14, 2022.]()
Credit: Miranda Lipton for The Texas Tribune