As the Supreme Court revisits the use of race in college admissions next week, critics of affirmative action are hopeful the justices will roll back the practice. A new report out Wednesday offers a big reason for their optimism: evidence from at least some of the nine states that don’t use affirmative action that leading public universities can bring meaningful diversity to their campuses through race-neutral means.

U.S. births fell for the fourth year in a row, the government reported Wednesday, with experts calling it more proof that the weak economy has continued to dampen enthusiasm for having children.
But there may be a silver lining: The decline in 2011 was just 1 percent — not as sharp a fall-off as the 2 to 3 percent drop seen in other recent years.

“It may be that the effect of the recession is slowly coming to an end,” said Carl Haub, a senior demographer with the Population Reference Bureau, a Washington, D.C.-based research organization.

Most striking in the new report were steep declines in Hispanic birth rates and a new low in teen births.

Festival-goers at this year’s Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin will be able to plan their fun day thanks to the festival’s new app, which launched yesterday.

The 2012 edition of the application will feature a new design and is available for all iPhone models.

Baylor’s library system has garnered international attention for its hard work in preserving Texas history and culture.

“The Top 20 Most Impressive University Special Collections,” an article produced by The Online Education Database, ranked Baylor’s Texas Collection as no. 11 internationally. The Online Education Database is a website that helps students find education programs to fulfill their academic and career objectives.