Baylor News
Several voices could be heard singing and echoing throughout the Bill Daniel Student Center on Thursday evening. Shortly after the singing stopped, thunderous applause lasted for several minutes. The building was filled with laughter and cheers as faculty, staff and students gathered around to watch the performances at the Black Student Welcome.
Amy Murphy, former manager of two Shipley Do-Nuts in Waco, said she went through the FastTrac Program 20 years ago and continues to apply what she learned about business during those 10 weeks in her current profession of social work.
The Baylor Line originated in 1970, with generations of Baylor freshmen after them immortalizing their names on the same golden line, according to BaylorProud. The Baylor Chamber of Commerce helps keep this tradition alive.
Even though Prater has not yet crossed paths with Foli, her impact on the graduate program is already present. Prater, who is currently reading Foli’s book on psychological trauma in nurses, said Foli’s arrival “reinforces [her] excitement to be at Baylor and in the program.”
Waco News
March of Dimes will step up fundraising this weekend to help support research and programs dedicated to infant health.
The nonprofit is hosting a walking event from 8 a.m. to noon Saturday behind the Mayborn Museum at the Governor Bill and Vara Daniel Historic Village. The actual walk does not start until 9 a.m., according to Becky Goss-Shepherd, March of Dimes division director in Waco, Temple and Killeen.
A lockdown this morning at Waco’s Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center has been lifted, allowing business to return to normal.
Shortly after 10 a.m. this morning, Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center in Waco went on lockdown in response to a threatening phone call. The hospital, which is located at 100 Hillcrest Medical Blvd., has been given the all-clear.
Google Inc. picked tech-savvy Austin on Tuesday as the next city where the search giant will wire homes with ultra-fast Internet connections, but did not say how much customers will pay or when the fiber-optic experiment might expand elsewhere in the U.S.
Austin and Kansas City are the only places to get Google Fiber — a broadband service 100 times faster than the competition and an alternative to cable or satellite TV providers.
McLennan County commissioners voted without discussion Tuesday to approve the purchase of 19 military-style rifles for the sheriff’s office, a week after Sheriff Parnell McNamara requested the weapons.
McNamara, who took office in January, described the purchase as a step toward arming his 40 patrol deputies with AR-15-style, M4 Patrolman’s Carbine rifles.
State News
Texas voters turned out in historic numbers Tuesday, delivering victories for State Rep. James Talarico and forcing a runoff between Attorney General Ken Paxton and incumbent Sen. John Cornyn in the state’s U.S. Senate contest that claimed national attention. The total early-voting turnout of more than 2.5 million marks the highest ever for a midterm primary election. The results also kicked off the 2026 midterm cycle.
National
Politics
INTERNATIONAL
The Iran war is now in its 46th day. Iran responded by restricting access to Hormuz, which carries about a fifth of the world’s seaborne oil, and moving to toll vessels transiting the strait. Waco drivers are already feeling it. The local average hit $3.38 a gallon last week, up 21 cents in seven days and 75 cents year-over-year, according to AAA data.
Gas prices in Texas have surged more than 70 cents per gallon since the U.S. went to war with Iran three weeks ago. The near-total shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz has driven oil prices up more than 40%, pushing the national average to its highest point since 2023 and sending diesel past $5 for the first time in three years.
The largest U.S. military operation in the Middle East in decades unfolded as American and Israeli forces struck Iran Saturday, killing its supreme leader and triggering retaliatory strikes from the Gulf to Israel. The White House said the campaign is aimed at dismantling Iran’s military and toppling its government.
Dr. Joshua Alley, assistant professor of political science, said part of the Trump administration’s interest in Greenland has to do with America’s national security strategy.
