New Research Reveals Women’s Issues in Texas

Texas has 14.6 million women and girls. That means only three states have a greater total population than Texas has women. While many Texas women are thriving, many more continue to face challenges when it comes to key pillars of financial security—education, child care, health insurance and stable housing. This is what Texas Women’s Foundation found in our fourth edition of Economic

Issues for Women in Texas 2022

This newest report not only provides updates on the four pillars of economic security the Foundation has been tracking since 2014, but also outlines new issues around digital access, cost of caregiving, workforce retention and eviction. As women of color comprise 59 percent of Texas women, the study also examines the economic status of Texas women through an intersected lens of gender, race and ethnicity, and identifies opportunities for change and policy recommendations.

The pandemic highlighted how the hard work of Texas women plays an integral role in the state’s economic prosperity. Still, Texas women face economic barriers such as pay inequity, college loan debt, access to affordable child care, lack of health insurance and housing cost burdens. Women of color and single mothers are disproportionately impacted by these economic hurdles. panel that included local leaders Sereka Barlow, Interim CEO of the YWCA El Paso Del Norte Region, Leila Melendez, CEO of Workforce Solutions Borderplex, and Azuri L. Gonzalez, Ed.D., Director for Institutional Policy and Practice of the Diana Natalicio Institute for Hispanic Student Success and Executive Director of the Alliance for Hispanic Serving Research Universities. These esteemed panelists used TXWF research as a starting point to highlight the local issues El Pasoans are facing, with a particular emphasis on child care and education.

Dena L. Jackson, Ph.D., Chief Strategy Officer at TXWF spearheaded the September research release kick-off event at Texas Woman’s University in Dallas. Additionally, Dr. Jackson was featured at the Women’s Fund of El Paso’s Advocacy Power Breakfast on a

Most recently, the Foundation hosted “Texas Women AND the Texas Economy and Tacos!” for legislative staff at the Texas State Capitol. The session was well attended by legislators and aides – from a spectrum of political positions – with more than 60 people showing up to hear the Foundation’s research findings on women in Texas. The Foundation is poised to have high quality touch points with the 88th Texas Legislature under the direction of Laura Atlas Kravitz, Director of Advocacy and Policy.

Many thanks to everyone who has attended, listened and read Economic Issues for Women in Texas 2022. The report is available for reference at www.txwfecoissues.org and the Foundation hopes it will continue to inform personal, corporate and legislative policy issues.