https://www.texastribune.org/about/staff/pavan-acharya/The latest news by Pavan Acharya.enMon, 24 Mar 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/24/texas-dei-definitions-ban-controversy/Diversity, equity and inclusion has become highly politicized — and there’s no standard definition for what it is.By María Méndez, Pavan Acharya and Cecilia LeMon, 24 Mar 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/24/texas-dei-definitions-ban-controversy/The Capitol dome is seen from the north side of the complex in Austin on March 18.The Capitol dome is seen from the north side of the complex in Austin on March 18, 2025.Kaylee Greenlee for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/24/texas-dei-bans-universities-state/Supporters say diversity initiatives close educational and income gaps born from a history of prejudice. Republican officials say they prioritize identity over merit.By Pavan Acharya and María MéndezMon, 24 Mar 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/24/texas-dei-bans-universities-state/Illustrated posters reading “We Belong Here” on the Texas Capitol’s rotunda floor during Texas Students for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion’s protest of HB1 Rider No. 186, which would defund DEI initiatives at public universities, on March 23, 2023.Illustrated posters reading “We Belong Here” litter the Capitol’s rotunda floor during Texas Students for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion’s protest of HB1 Rider No. 186, which would defund DEI initiatives at public universities, on Mar. 23, 2023.Leila Saidane/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/18/texas-cell-phone-ban-public-schools/If the proposal becomes law, Texas would follow in the footsteps of several Democrat- and Republican-led states that have enacted similar bans.By Pavan AcharyaTue, 18 Mar 2025 16:28:19 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/18/texas-cell-phone-ban-public-schools/The Texas House of Representatives Public Education Committee heard public testimony Tuesday on House Bill 1481, which would ban students in Texas' public schools from using cell phones during school hours.The Texas House of Representatives Public Education Committee hears public testimony on House Bill 1481 relating to the use of personal wireless communication devices during school hours and activities in Austin on March 18, 2025.Kaylee Greenlee for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/17/texas-special-education-funding-schools/Proponents say the changes would better serve special education students with widely varying needs — and help schools pay for it.By Pavan AcharyaMon, 17 Mar 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/17/texas-special-education-funding-schools/A classroom at Alfonso Borrego Sr. Elementary School in San Elizario on July 23, 2024.A classroom at Alfonso Borrego Sr. Elementary School. The school received Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds for new flexible seating, desks, and spaces for students to relax during class in San Elizario, Texas on July 23, 2024Justin Hamel for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/11/rafael-cruz-communism-texas-schools-christianity/The prominent right-wing pastor told state lawmakers that an anti-communist curriculum is crucial to reaffirming that America is a “Christian country.”By Pavan Acharya and Robert DownenTue, 11 Mar 2025 17:35:06 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/11/rafael-cruz-communism-texas-schools-christianity/Rafael Cruz, a pastor and the father of U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, told the K-12 Senate education committee that schools should be required to teach lessons about the victims of communism.Rafael Cruz, father of U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, testifies before the K-12 Senate education committee on March 11, 2025.Lorianne Willett/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/07/texas-doge-government-efficiency-house-elon-musk/The new legislative panel has been tasked to reduce the size and scope of government. But Democrats say they’re not interested in replicating Musk’s slash-and-burn approach.By Pavan AcharyaFri, 07 Mar 2025 05:00:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/07/texas-doge-government-efficiency-house-elon-musk/The Texas Capitol on Aug. 13, 2021.The Texas Capitol on Aug. 13, 2021.Sophie Park/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/05/texas-school-library-book-bans-senate-bill/Senate Bill 13 would create school library advisory councils largely made up of parents. It would give school boards, rather than librarians, the final say over new books.By Pavan AcharyaWed, 05 Mar 2025 15:54:23 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/05/texas-school-library-book-bans-senate-bill/A bill authored by state Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney, would create advisory groups largely made up of parents to recommend books for school libraries and give final say on which to procure to school boards, not librarians.Shelves filled with books at a school library in San Marcos.Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/04/texas-senate-ten-commandments-prayer-schools/The vote comes amid a broader push by conservative Christians to infuse more religion into public schools and life.By Pavan Acharya and Robert DownenTue, 04 Mar 2025 18:34:29 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/04/texas-senate-ten-commandments-prayer-schools/The Ten Commandments Monument is seen at the Texas Capitol in Austin. A Texas Senate panel on Tuesday advanced a bill Tuesday that would require schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms.The Texas Capitol and the Ten Commandments Monument at sunrise on Tuesday, June 6, in Austin, Texas.Joe Timmerman/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/03/texas-honey-bee-deaths/Commercial beekeepers in Texas have lost about two thirds of their honey bees since June last year, according to a recent survey.By Pavan AcharyaMon, 03 Mar 2025 05:00:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/03/texas-honey-bee-deaths/Luis Hernandez, a beekeeper with Frio Country Farms in Davis, shows an empty bee frame from a hive where the bees have died at the Noria bee yard on Feb. 25, 2025. Beekeepers nationwide are experiencing their highest honey bee losses in decades, which has large implications for Texas.Luis Hernandez, a beekeeper with Frio Country Farms, shows off an empty bee frame from a hive where the bees have died at the Noria bee yard on Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025 in Davis, Texas. Robert Wheeler, co-owner of Frio Country Farms, estimates 35% of the bees at this particular bee yard have died since November. Beekeepers nationwide are experiencing their highest honey bee losses nationwide in decades, which has large implications for Texas, the top bee-keeping state in the nation.Salgu Wissmath for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/24/texas-dei-public-schools-k12/The bill would ban diversity, equity and inclusion policies related to hiring and programming, while creating ways for parents to complain about violations to the DEI ban.By Jaden Edison and Pavan AcharyaMon, 24 Feb 2025 10:58:38 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/24/texas-dei-public-schools-k12/Passing period at United South High School in Laredo on Oct. 23, 2018.Passing period at United South High School in Laredo on Oct. 23, 2018.Rachel Zein for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/20/texas-house-public-school-funding/The proposal, filed Thursday, comes well short of the increase school administrators and education advocates have been asking for.By Pavan AcharyaThu, 20 Feb 2025 13:59:21 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/20/texas-house-public-school-funding/A Texas House bill filed Thursday would increase the base amount public schools receive in state funding from $6,160 per pupil to $6,380.Nimitz Middle School students take part in a class activity Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa.Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/15/texas-west-earthquake-magnitude/The 5.0 magnitude earthquake is tied for the sixth strongest in state history. Scientists have warned for years that increased fracking in West Texas is causing higher earthquake activity.By Pavan AcharyaSat, 15 Feb 2025 13:58:36 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/15/texas-west-earthquake-magnitude/A fracking site in Pecos County on Feb. 4, 2023.A drilling rig in Pecos County on Feb. 4, 2023.Pu Ying Huang/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/12/texas-ten-commandments-school-prayer/Past efforts to allow more religion in public schools have been hamstrung by legal challenges. But those on the religious right feel empowered by recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions.By Pavan Acharya and Robert DownenWed, 12 Feb 2025 12:48:44 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/12/texas-ten-commandments-school-prayer/A Bible sits on a representative's desk on the House floor of the state Capitol in Austin on Jan 10, 2023.A christian bible sits on a representatives desk on the house floor on first day of the 88th legislature, Jan 10, 2023.Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/10/school-safety-armed-guard-texas-legislature/Texas law requires an armed officer at each school. Districts are asking lawmakers to pay the full yearly cost, which they say is $100 per student.By Pavan AcharyaMon, 10 Feb 2025 14:42:33 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/10/school-safety-armed-guard-texas-legislature/Officers test classroom doors and patrol an elementary school in Uvalde on the first day of classes in September 2022. How to pay the cost of armed guards at schools is on the agenda for Texas lawmakers.Two DPS officers test classroom doors and patrol the campus at Dalton Elementary School on the first day of school in Uvalde on Sept. 6, 2022.Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/08/measles-west-texas-vaccine-outbreak/Most of the infections have shown up in Gaines County. Texas health officials have consistently said that vaccination is the best way for people to avoid the highly contagious airborne disease.By Pavan AcharyaSat, 08 Feb 2025 11:09:55 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/08/measles-west-texas-vaccine-outbreak/The Texas health department reported the number of measles cases in Gaines County in West Texas is now 10. Most are children and all were unvaccinated.An empty emergency room at Goodall-Witcher Hospital in Clifton on August 3, 2021.Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/06/texas-children-health-care-gaps/A San Antonio panel discussed the results of a new survey on the well-being of Texas children Thursday and proposed solutions to the state’s ongoing challenges.By Pavan AcharyaThu, 06 Feb 2025 14:51:28 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/06/texas-children-health-care-gaps/According to the 2024 Texas Kids Count Data Book that was released Thursday, about 2.9 million Texas children live in households that are above the poverty line but earn below what would be considered a living wage.A student walks down the hallway at Cactus Elementary School in Cactus on Jan. 28, 2020.Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/04/texas-technology-quantum-computing/Proponents say the technology can improve cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and pharmaceutical development.By Pavan AcharyaWed, 05 Feb 2025 15:43:35 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/04/texas-technology-quantum-computing/https://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/04/texas-schools-chronic-absenteeism/Chronically absent students — those who missed at least 10% of their school days — are more likely to drop out, education advocates say.By Pavan AcharyaTue, 04 Feb 2025 05:00:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/04/texas-schools-chronic-absenteeism/A student who misses 10% of the days in a school year -- enough to be considered chronically absent -- will lose opportunities for counseling and will have an increased risk of educational issues.Nimitz Middle School students gather in the hallway outside of a classroom as they wait for a teacher between periods Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa.Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/01/trump-tariffs-texas-mexico/The tariffs, which also target China, are scheduled to go into effect Tuesday. They prompted immediate efforts to retaliate.By Pavan AcharyaSat, 01 Feb 2025 17:48:52 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/01/trump-tariffs-texas-mexico/A line of trucks wait to cross the World Trade Bridge over the Rio Grande from Mexico into the United States in Laredo, on Sept. 16, 2020.A line of trucks wait to cross the World Trade Bridge over the Rio Grande from Mexico into the United States in Laredo, on Sept. 16, 2020.Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/30/texas-centerpoint-energy-lowers-power-costs-hurricane-beryl/Houston’s main electrical company backed off plans to raise rates after facing sharp criticism for its response to massive power outages after Hurricane Beryl.By Pavan AcharyaThu, 30 Jan 2025 12:12:14 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/30/texas-centerpoint-energy-lowers-power-costs-hurricane-beryl/Utility trucks line up, preparing to repair power outages after Hurricane Beryl struck Houston in July 2024.Electric trucks line up to provide support with major power outages after Hurricane Beryl in Houston, on Wednesday, July 10, 2024.Joseph Bui for The Texas Tribune