Baylor News
From 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday, zookeepers at the Cameron Park Zoo rarely get a moment off their feet, spending the vast majority of their time training and caring for the more than 1,700 animals across over 300 species currently housed within the zoo’s boundaries.
People may think finance is all about making money, but according to Dr. Shane Underwood, Baylor students are among those who are learning to use their skills to help the world.
With summer rapidly approaching and finals on the horizon, preparation for residence hall move-out has begun. The Campus Living and Learning team has provided guidelines for students moving out of on-campus residence halls in the upcoming weeks.
The universitywide Civil Discourse Event: Perspectives on Free Speech on College Campuses covered varying opinions about the place of controversial topics, viewpoint diversity, bias and censorship Tuesday evening.
Waco News
Five Baylor students and two Baylor-associated organizations received recognition for their volunteer work at the Mission Waco Mission World banquet Tuesday.
The students won Volunteer of the Year awards. Brooks Residential College and Zeta Zigga Zamma received special recognition.
The awards give the nonprofit a chance to recognize its volunteers, said Seth Dorrell, director of Mission World and volunteer director.
Another low-cost grocery store has arrived in Waco, and it’s not Walmart or H.E.B.
Aldi, a German discount grocery store, will be open for business Feb. 28 on the corner of Wooded Acres and Valley Mills drives.
According to their website, Aldi opened its first store in Germany in 1913 and came to the U.S. in 1976.
Christians crossed ethnic boundaries Thursday to explore how Waco churches serve immigrants in the community.
Only a few days after a bipartisan group of U.S. senators agreed on a way to overhaul the current immigration system, Calvary Baptist Church came together with 20 local churches during “God’s Heart toward Immigrants,” to challenge how immigrants were seen in the church.
Mission Waco volunteers will celebrate their past year of service to the Waco community on Tuesday.
The Mission Waco Banquet will take place at 6 p.m. Tuesday in
Chisholm Hall of the Waco Convention Center.
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.
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.
