SAM HOUSTON STATE UNIVERSITY

As many teens are beginning to learn their ground in high school, Nehemiah Juniel is making history at Sam Houston State University as the youngest graduate at SHSU.

Carlos Hernandez will focus on student recruitment and bolstering academic programs at Sul Ross to combat declining enrollment.

Leaders at higher education institutions are trying to attract students by offering flexibility with instructional modes — and they said that flexibility is here to stay.

A graduate of Sam Houston State University, Priest has worked in newsrooms in Temple, Victoria and Fort Worth.

Texas Tech administrators said last month the university will host multiple in-person commencement ceremonies over a two-day period, as well as a virtual ceremony. At Texas Tech, students helped drive the effort to bring back in-person commencement. Lamar University and Texas Southern University are also planning in-person graduation ceremonies. Other universities plan to hold in-person commencement ceremonies throughout spring 2021 for those who graduated in spring 2020, depending on the status of the pandemic. Disclosure: Lamar University, Sam Houston State University, Texas A&M University, Texas Southern University, Texas Tech University, University of Texas at El Paso, University of Texas at San Antonio and University of North Texas have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors.

Sam Houston State University and the Texas State University System are planning to hire 200 contact tracers as experts warn of a potential fall COVID-19 surge. Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas TribuneSam Houston State University and the Texas State University System are aiming to hire approximately 200 COVID-19 contact tracers statewide ahead of an expected resurgence of the novel coronavirus this fall. Greg Abbott in April set a goal of employing 4,000 contact tracers by June 1 as part of his phased reopening plan. The state partnered with the Texas State University System to “provide additional flexibility as the pandemic continues,” he said. “As it stands, there are enough contact tracers in the call center to handle the current workload,” Van Deusen said.

Sam Houston State University welcomed students back for an uncertain fall semester this week with a free, in-person comedy show starring movie star and comedian Tiffany Haddish. In late March, Sam Houston State postponed its graduation ceremony to the end of July, and in mid-June, it announced the ceremony would be Aug. 1 in a virtual format, according to KBTX-TV. Cassee Prince, an alumna of Sam Houston State who graduated Aug. 1, said she was frustrated the university chose to hold the Haddish event in person but canceled its in-person graduation ceremony. The Sam Houston State staff member said he was disappointed that the event was held when the pandemic is still ongoing. It seems a little bit of a 'mission accomplished' moment.Disclosure: Facebook and Sam Houston State University have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors.

If faculty members didn't fit in those categories and still wanted to teach remotely, they were asked to have conversations with their department heads about specific accommodations. Texas A&M will have around 1,800 faculty members teaching courses with an in-person component and 1,300 teaching online-only classes, Fierke said. But allowing faculty members to work from home because of individual safety concerns does not seem to be the norm, Kelchen said. There will be around 1,200 faculty members teaching courses with an in-person component. Disclosure: Sam Houston State University, Texas A&M University, the Texas A&M University System, Texas Christian University, Texas State University, the University of Texas at Austin and The New York Times have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors.