Weekend Events Roundup

Warm up for Halloween with this weekend's top events

As the days pass in October, the chill in the air seems to intensify — mostly due to some of the best temperatures we’ve had this year and the fact that Halloween is just peeking from around the corner. The spookiest holiday of the year isn’t still until Thursday, but you can still find a few subtle ways to get your fix before the big day.

Whenever you’re not out at a Halloween house party or standing in line for a few hours to pick out a costume at Lucy in Disguise, here are some fun options for the weekend.

Friay, October 25

Mondo Gallery Reception: “It Didn’t Rot Our Brains”

The pop culture poster artists of Mondo are ready to debut a new exhibit just in time for All Hallows’ Eve, but instead of focusing on posters inspired by memorable horror films, they decided to go with art inspired by a classic cult comic book and TV series that had a certain ghoulish host.

Tales From the Crypt started out as a horror anthology series from EC Comics and morphed into a beloved HBO series in the 1990s, starring the creepy punster, The Crypt Keeper. Mondo’s newest exhibit features artists paying tribute to this horror icon and some of their favorite stories from the series. Even Jack Davis, an original artist from the EC Comics era, will have his own artwork on display.

Friday, October 25 – Sunday, October 27

U.S. Vintage Racing National Championship

If you happen to find yourself at the Circuit of the Americas for some racing action this weekend, you may feel like you traveled through time warp based on the cars you see on the track.

This is actually intentional, because COTA will go retro this weekend with the U.S. Vintage Racing National Championship. Fans of racing history don’t want to miss what the Sportscar Vintage Racing Association has planned for the weekend. Some people collect memorabilia and antiques, but the SVRA isn’t afraid to race them and prove that, just like Betty White, these old cars still have the horsepower.

Saturday, October 26

Yoga Jams With Fun Fun Fun Fest and Black Swan Yoga

We’re about two weeks away from the time when Auditorium Shores roars to life with Fun Fun Fun Fest, and if you’re looking for a way to focus your mind and body before you wreck it with a weekend of music, comedy and tacos, they have you covered. Black Swan Yoga will host an open-air yoga session up on the rooftop of The Mohawk that’s free for anyone who can bring his or her own mat, both this coming Saturday and on November 1.

Would you also like to listen to a few tunes as a preview of what’s to come at the festival? On both days, artists from the Black Stage and Blue Stage will have special preview performances, meaning you can get a good mix of punk, metal, hip hop and electronic over both weekends. Who needs a Spotify playlist when you have some yoga jams?

Saturday, October 26 – Sunday, October 27

Texas Book Festival and Lit Crawl

Lit nerds, your dream weekend is back. The Texas Book Festival returns to the State Capitol grounds with piles of books to peruse along with countless authors to meet, chat with and maybe get to sign a copy or two of their books. It is free to attend for the public, but if you donate $100 to this nonprofit, you will receive a Fast Pass for priority line access for headliner sessions and signings, putting you that much closer to Goosebumps creator R.L. Stine.

Want to make more of an experience out of it? Take part in the annual Lit Crawl around Austin for a more intimate setting with authors, eventually culminating in a big party at the end. Reading is the ultimate adventure — you just have to take a look, because it’s in a book.

It's "Frights. Camera. Action!" at Mondo Gallery with the opening of the "It Didn't Rot Our Brains" exhibit.

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Study This

Austin is the No. 7 most educated city in the country, says Forbes

Photo by Dan Dennis on Unsplash

UT Austin gets a lot of praise, but this study includes degrees from everywhere — as long as the recipient lives in Texas.

Austin and San Antonio don't get all the same opportunities as the even larger cities in Texas, but in a recent study they prove they're prepared. Both made the top 10 in Forbes Advisor's "Most Educated Cities In The U.S." list: San Antonio was No. 4, and Austin was No. 7.

Other Texas cities made the list of 100, but some fell surprisingly far behind. Dallas made No. 20, followed by Houston at No. 79 and Fort Worth at No. 93. In some even more surprising twists, the smaller city of Garland was the fourth in Texas at No. 26, and El Paso, Corpus Christi, and Laredo all beat Houston.

This study compared the 100 largest cities in the country as of the 2021 census, using metrics like high school dropout rate, percentage of adults age 25 and older with some college, but no degree, undergraduate college completion rate, and percentage of adults age 25 and older with an advanced degree. There were also some lower-weighted metrics about equity, studying racial and gender college completion gaps.

Although many education studies fall into praising the University of Texas, this one considers education as a whole — while still mentioning the university once.

In San Antonio, the bachelor’s completion rate for people 25 and up was 67.30 percent, and 29.56 percent of people in that age group have advanced degrees. The study doesn't have much to say about educational opportunities in the city, focusing instead of its tourist potential. But it did note that the city had one of the smallest racial gaps for higher ed, which was only -5.49 percent. Its gender gap was 0.97 percent, and its high school dropout rate was 4.53 percent.

San Antonio's Trinity University did great in a Niche study that came out in early September. It was the No. 18 best small college in America, and topped the list entirely in Texas. Among bigger fish, it was also the No. 20 best liberal arts college in the country (and again the best in Texas), and made No. 4 in general for best colleges in Texas.

In Austin, 59.89 of people 25 or older completed Bachelor's degrees, and 22.76 percent completed advanced degrees. The racial gap was much worse at -10.87 percent. Its gender gap was a bit less than San Antonio's, at 0.69 percent, and its high school dropout rate was more at 7.56 percent.

Of course, this is where the study mentions UT, which is based in Austin. It made WalletHub's 2024 ranking of the best colleges and universities in Texas and earned the No. 2 spot; clinched the No. 6 spot in Niche's ranking of the best public universities in the country; and earned No. 2 in a list of best undergraduate programs for entrepreneurs by the Princeton Review, among other accolades.

Just breaking into the top 20, Dallas' Bachelor's degree completion rate was 57.05 percent, with 21.37 percent attaining advanced degrees. The racial and gender gaps were −14.99 percent and 1.64 percent, respectively. Much further down the list, Houston's Bachelor's degree completion rate was only 32.99 percent, and only 10.97% achieved advanced degrees. High school dropouts were at 8.90 percent, and the racial and gender gaps were −4.99 and 2.10 percent respectively.

Here are all the Texas cities on the list of 100, in order from most to least educated:

4. San Antonio
7. Austin
20. Dallas
26. Garland
49. El Paso
59. Corpus Christi
76. Laredo
79. Houston
81. Arlington
83. Irving

More information on the study by Forbes advisor, including full city rankings and expanded methodology, is available at forbes.com.

education universities

Weekend Events Roundup

Warm up for Halloween with this weekend's top events

It's "Frights. Camera. Action!" at Mondo Gallery with the opening of the "It Didn't Rot Our Brains" exhibit.

Riverside development plans venue 10 times the size of neighboring Emo's

Huge art projection to transform historic waterfront building in Austin

8 Austin hotels earn first-ever Michelin Keys for exceptional stays

Study This

Austin is the No. 7 most educated city in the country, says Forbes