By Brian Lyman | Editor
The state’s flagship universities have both had multiple years of tuition hikes. And if inflation is driving it as they say, it’s not going to get better anytime soon.
William J. Samford Hall at Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama. (Anna Barrett/Alabama Reflector)
EDUCATION
By Andrea Tinker
Auburn University’s Board of Trustees Friday approved a 2% tuition increase for in-state students starting next year, and a 5% increase for out-of-state students. The trustees also approved a 3% increase at Auburn University Montgomery for both in-state and out-of-state students. School officials said inflation, the cost of retaining employees and student services played a role. The University of Alabama is also raising tuition next year.
Georgia Power’s Plant Bowen, a coal-fired power station in Bartow County, Georgia, on July 28, 2026. (Alander Rocha/Georgia Recorder)
ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT
By Jacob Fischler
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will revoke emissions limits on coal and natural gas-fired power plants, which the EPA claimed would lower energy costs raised by the war in Iran while dismissing the threat of increased emissions exacerbating climate change. Environmental groups and Democrats blasted the decision, saying it would increase air pollution and further threaten the environment
Chase Johnson of Cary, North Carolina, is among the cancer survivors and patients participating in a clinical trial for a new cancer vaccine. (Courtesy Chase Johnson)
HEALTHCARE
By Sofia Resnick, Stateline
Researchers are hopeful about the potential of mRNA vaccines to fight cancer, and a team last month announced one such vaccine had succeeded in a late-stage trial for skin cancer. But experts fear misinformation about vaccines and the Trump administration’s willingness to amplify it could blunt the effectiveness of the new vaccines. Similar attacks made on the safe and effective HPV vaccine has undermined uptake and even led to state laws restricting it.
ICYMI
Alabama Charter School Commission approves merger, renewal applications | Andrea Tinker, Alabama Reflector
US Senate could soon take up bill to set standards for college athlete compensation | Shauneen Miranda, DC Bureau
U.S. Senate Dems disclose Trump administration operation dug through state voter rolls | Ariana Figueroa, DC Bureau
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