Texas has entered a new era in higher education. From 2000 to 2015, many of the initiatives undertaken by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and colleges and universities were intended to achieve one or more of the four goals of Closing the Gaps.

Texas has now launched 60x30TX, the new higher education strategic plan which aims to position Texas among the highest achieving states in the country and maintain its global competitiveness. 60x30TX is entirely student-centered: its overarching goal is that 60 percent of young adults (25-34) in Texas will hold some type of postsecondary credential by 2030. It also proposes that these graduates will have marketable skills regardless of major and that, statewide, students will not graduate with debt exceeding 60 percent of their first-year wages.