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Kate McGee covers higher education for The Texas Tribune. She joined the Tribune in October 2020 after nearly a decade as a reporter at public radio stations across the country, including in Chicago, Washington D.C., Austin, Reno, Nev. and New York. Kate was born in New York City and primarily raised in New Jersey. She earned her bachelor's degree from Fordham University. Her work has appeared on NPR’s Morning Edition, All Things Considered, Here and Now, and The Takeaway. She is based in Austin.
University officials said Wednesday that the decision to keep the Ross statue in place is not a new one, and that the diversity committee that has been studying the issue for the past three months was never considering removing the statue. Full Story
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“While some universities have attempted to ignore demands surrounding symbols, names and iconography, in the majority of cases, they have been unsuccessful, and by inadequately addressing the issue, increased reputational damage,” a committee report says referring to the debate about the Confederate monument. Full Story
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Students of color said they feel most of their calls to eliminate racist symbols from campuses have been ignored or intentionally mired in lengthy, bureaucratic processes intended to delay answers to difficult questions. Full Story
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The new weekly test requirement is possible with the help of a new multimillion-dollar, on-campus lab that produces test results in less than 24 hours. Full Story
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The former state senator, speaking publicly for the first time about the October incident, said she was not surprised by last week's insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, criticizing Republicans for emboldening Trump supporters to act lawlessly. Full Story
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The flagship university in Austin is urging students to space out their return to campus for spring semester to reduce the spread of COVID-19 as cases in Travis County reach record highs. Full Story
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Texas lawmakers and other officials have taken the lead on baseless lawsuits that sought to dismiss the results of the presidential election and have tried to rally Trump supporters to protest his loss. Full Story
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“We are unable to pinpoint our initial exposure, as we ... made the difficult decision to celebrate Christmas with just our own household this year,” Bonnen, who is retiring from the House, wrote on his Facebook page. Full Story
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The move comes after Congress passed a stimulus bill Monday extending the federal moratorium on evictions through the end of January. The moratorium order was set to expire at the end of the year. Full Story
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Universities across Texas and nationwide are seeing an increase in online cheating since the start of the pandemic, as students take more virtual courses and test remotely with less supervision. Full Story
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