Baylor News
Coming all the way from Yale University, assistant professor of psychology and neuroscience Dr. Francesca Penner joined the department this fall and is bringing research about parent-child relationships and mental health to Baylor.
“Their faith and friendship is just as compelling and real and attractive as anyone else’s,” Dr. Erik Carter said. “The way we gather in communities separates people — because of fear, because of attitudes, because of whatever. So that is now the running theme through all of the research I do: It’s how do you get people to be in community with one another in our schools, in our workplaces, in our churches, on our college campuses?”
From wings to waffles, the Penland Crossroads offers a wide variety of options as the largest dining hall on campus — but freshmen seem to favor its milk. A student-run milk-drinking competition known as “Milk Monday” has taken campus by storm, with over 150 students in attendance this week.
Baylor Multicultural Affairs is offering students the opportunity to immerse themselves in the history of the civil rights movement with a trip across the U.S. in January. The deadline to apply is Oct. 11.
Waco News
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.
