Our Work

The Texas Higher Education Foundation strives to foster purposeful and strategic initiatives that positively affect postsecondary outcomes at scale and further the goals of the state’s strategic plan, Building a Talent Strong Texas.

Building a Talent Strong Texas

Our refreshed strategic plan expands on the successes and progress of our previous plan, 60x30TX, by widening the lens for higher education by focusing on three measurable, data-driven goals:

Goals overview

Attainment of Postsecondary Credentials

Expanding our attainment goal to include all working-age Texans and broadening the types of credentials we include can increase employment opportunities and income for individuals, create a deeper talent pool for employers, and align students’ skills with workforce demands.

TARGETS

  • 60% of Texans ages 25-34 will receive a degree, certificate, or other postsecondary credential of value by 2030.
  • 60% of Texans ages 35-64 will receive a degree, certificate, or other postsecondary credential of value by 2030.

Postsecondary Credentials of Value

Credentials from Texas institutions of higher education must propel graduates into lasting, successful careers that equip them for continued learning and greater earning potential, with low or manageable debt.

TARGETS

  • 550,000 students will complete postsecondary credentials of value each year.
  • 95% of students will graduate with no undergraduate student debt or manageable levels of debt in relation to their potential earnings.

Research, Development, and Innovation

Texas must be a leading state in generating knowledge through basic and applied research, and translating that research to innovations, discoveries, and economic development.

TARGETS

  • $1 billion increase in annual private and federal research and development expenditures by 2030.
  • 7,500 research doctorates awarded annually by Texas institutions of higher education.

Renewing our Commitment to Equity

Across all these goals, we will break down the data by race, gender, income, and geography to make sure all Texans have an opportunity to succeed. Over the past decade, 95% of our state’s population growth was in communities of color. If we do not advance our higher education goals equitably, we can’t achieve them.

 

Read the full plan here

Foundation-Supported Priority Initiatives

We believe achieving the vision set forth by the Building a Talent Strong Texas Plan will lead us to a future where Texas is among the highest-achieving and globally competitive states in the nation. Commitment to this vision fuels the Foundation’s mission to serve as a catalyst for purposeful and strategic impact at scale. Among others, THEF has supported the following priority initiatives: