A new study found Texas is home to half of the U.S. colleges located in communities deemed affordable for students.

The personal finance company WalletHub ranked Edinburg, home to the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, as the most wallet-friendly college town. Located in the southern part of the state, Edinburg has a population of roughly 104,000.

Ramiro Garza Jr., mayor of Edinburg, believes the community ranks high because it has worked hard to be cost-competitive, especially when it comes to affordable rent.

"The University's also a great institution here in our community and we've been growing very rapidly," Garza explained. "Partly, it's due to the growth of the University."

In addition to Edinburg, four other Texas towns are among the top 10 ranked as the most "wallet-friendly." They include Brownsville, home of the University of Texas at Brownsville, along with McAllen, Nacogdoches and Killeen, all of which offer significant higher education opportunities.

Garza has firsthand experience with colleges on the list. Prior to becoming mayor of Edinburg, he attended what was then called the University of Texas Pan-American at Brownsville, which is part of the same system.

"I have a business degree," Garza noted. "With a concentration in finance, and I also have masters in business administration out of the university."

Edinburg's median household income is around $53,000, with rent typically less than $1,000 per month, according to the U.S. Census. To determine the most affordable college towns, WalletHub evaluated 415 cities of various sizes with a college or university population of at least 7,500 students.

Support for this reporting was provided by Lumina Foundation.

Artificial intelligence is changing how people learn and work, and universities in North Carolina and across the country are racing to keep up.

William Peace University in Raleigh is one of them, taking part in a national program to help students develop the AI skills they will need to thrive in the workplace.

Lynda Szymanski, vice president of academic affairs at the university, said it is all about giving students real-world experience and preparing them for the demands of today's jobs.

"The statistic that really struck me is, 66% of the leaders said they would not hire someone without artificial intelligence skills," Szymanski noted. "We feel compelled to make sure our students have the skills that they need to be successful."

The latest Gallup poll found 93% of Fortune 500 companies are already using AI in the workplace. William Peace is one of 124 schools selected to participate in the American Association of Colleges and Universities inaugural Institute on AI, Pedagogy and the Curriculum.

Michelle Corvette, director of faculty development and immersive learning at the university, said the new focus brings some challenges, especially in teaching students when and how to use AI responsibly. The goal is to help them rethink how they work and learn, and one way they are doing it is by integrating AI into the curriculum from day one.

"That is something that we do focus on here at William Peace University," Corvette explained. "Because our students experience immersive learning and generative AI in our first-year seminar classes as first years and then all the way to senior. And we don't just save it for our senior seminar students."

As a part of the initiative, she said the university will join other schools in monthly webinars to share ideas. Faculty members will also connect with mentors and AI experts to help navigate learning.

The automotive industry is changing, and one Utah university is reimagining how to prepare new and current auto technicians to meet the demands of the transition from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles.

Brian Rague, associate dean of the College of Engineering, Applied Science and Technology at Weber State University, says their automotive technology program's "stackable" credentialing approach enables students of any age and desire to learn the fundamental skills they'll need to be hired by industry partners.

"We are a higher education institution, our four-year degrees are valuable to us. But certainly, within our college and across the university, we see the necessity to allow students to take things a little bit at a time. To learn things and earn credentials in a step-by-step fashion," he explained.

Rague added they work with car companies to ensure students are learning in-demand skills. Add EVs and autonomous driving into the mix, and students are also learning about IT and engineering. He said many already work in the field and can apply their professional certifications toward credits for an associate degree. Students can stop there, or continue on toward a bachelor of science in automotive technology.

Rague said the college is in constant conversations with industry partners to update their courses and certificates.

"We have a couple of certificates available for our automotive students. We have several certificates in other disciplines within the college; and we also have advanced certificates for those who have been in the workforce for a while," he continued.

He said the more advanced certificates could be attractive to those who want to learn more about electric vehicles and newer battery technology, and added that the need for experts and specialists of all ages will grow as EVs gain more traction.

During this National Hispanic Heritage Month, the University of Arkansas in Little Rock is celebrating an increased enrollment of Hispanic and Latino students.

Most of the students are the first ones in their families to attend college, and they have found support and comradery through the Hispanic/Latin Initiative.

Senior Blanca Ramirez helped form the group and said they're there to walk students through the four-year college experience.

Juniors and seniors mentor incoming underclassmen, and the group hosts workshops and mixers to introduce members to Hispanic professionals.

"We know that the students will relate more to them as a Hispanic," said Ramirez. "They're always like 'this is one of the best events that we had because I get to talk to them and get to know how their journey was and where they're at right now.'"

Membership in the program increased from 10 last year to 64 students this year.

As part of the program, students are matched with professional mentors - and volunteer for community organizations and nonprofits throughout Little Rock.

Ramirez said since most of the members are first generation college students, the Initiative helps them feel more at home.

"It's very warm-hearted to us, because we're able to have someone that we can relate to and that is also gonna be there with us," said Ramirez, "and that we're all gonna walk through the same steps, we're all gonna help each other. "

Ramirez said HLI also offers federal student aid and resume writing workshops.

Support for this reporting was provided by Lumina Foundation.




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