Houston City College has reached its highest enrollment since 2019 as it surpasses 100,000 students, college officials announced in a June 25 news release.

The achievement comes after Houston City College Chancellor Margaret Ford Fisher set a goal at last year’s fall convocation to restore enrollment following COVID-19 and build on student success.

Zooming in: The increased enrollment is part of a larger plan to improve the quality and quantity of opportunities offered by HCC, per the release.

Since 2022, the college’s student award attainment rate has increased by 30% and is on track to graduate a record number of students.

In their own words: “Every campus, every office and every employee embraced the mission of expanding access to opportunity, upward mobility and meaningful careers,” Ford Fisher said. “We are investing in people, building stronger communities and preparing a highly skilled workforce to shape what’s next for Houston."

The Audrey Restaurant owner, Omar Khan, said the upscale restaurant has plans to expand with a second location in Post Oak this summer. The Audrey Restaurant and Bar was founded in 2023 in The Woodlands.

The details: Omar Khan said the new location will offer a private event space with 24 seats and have a similar concept as its original location. Designed in collaboration with Denise Khan and global web icon Laura Loreman Interior Design Studio, Omar Khan said the new location will include elements unique to the area.

What they offer: Named after Audrey Hepburn, Omar and Denise Khan opened The Audrey Restaurant and Bar as a unique concept that fuses classic American dishes and a love of cinema under one roof.

• 1616 Post Oak Blvd, Ste. 1A, Houston

The city of Houston officially renamed the former Cesar Chavez Boulevard to Joe E. Ramirez Boulevard on June 26.

The gist: To align with the new street name, METRO announced that it changed the Cesar Chavez/67th Street METRORail station to the Joe E. Ramirez METRORail station.

"Aligning with the city's update ensures clarity for our riders and reinforces our connection to the communities we serve," said METRO board Chair Elizabeth Gonzalez Brock.

How we got here: Houston City Council unanimously approved the change of the street name in May after labor leader and United Farm Workers co-founder Chavez was accused of sexual assault and abuse by several union affiliates, including co-founder Dolores Huerta. Huerta made a public statement alleging the abuse.

In April, U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia appeared before City Council in support of a street name change.

Council unanimously approved the change to Joe E. Ramirez Boulevard in May, and on June 26, the street officially changed during a special ceremony.

Texas' Republican-led State Board of Education approved a sweeping rewrite of the state's social studies curriculum standards and a list of dozens of books that students will be required to read each school year, both of which are infused with biblical references. The new requirements will begin rolling out to public school classrooms in the 2030-31 school year.

The details: As many as 25 texts will be read each year in early elementary school grades, with about 10 books required in later grades. The reading list was created under a 2023 state law requiring “at least one literary work” per grade.

The new social studies curriculum standards will expand lessons about Texas and American history, deemphasizing some teachings about world cultures and people of color. The standards also expand the amount of content students will be expected to learn each year.

The debate: Proponents of the new standards and reading list said they will teach students to love their state and country, while critics said the policies do not include diverse perspectives.