UH launches online MBA, plus six new digital degree programs

online ed

The University of Houston has announced new and evolved online business programs. Photo courtesy of University of Houston

The University of Houston's C. T. Bauer College of Business announced this month that it will begin offering fully online Master of Business Administration and Bachelor of Business Administration programs in the upcoming fall semester.

The new offerings are part of the college's 2020-2025 Strategic Plan that focuses on becoming a leader in digital learning and affordable education options.

In addition to the online BBA and MBA degrees, Bauer is launching five other fully online business-minded graduate programs:

Online Master of Science in Business Analytics
Online Master of Science in Finance
Online Master of Science in Management & Leadership
Online Master of Science in Management Information Systems
Online Master of Science in Supply Chain Management

Over the summer, Paul Pavlou, dean of the Bauer School and Cullen Distinguished Chair Professor, told InnovationMap that enrollment in the Bauer College had increased by about 70 percent, as the school focused on accessibility and affordability amid the pandemic and record job losses.

According to Pavlou, these new degree programs will be an extension of that effort.

"Given the recent developments due to COVID-19, and the broader challenges for higher education, it has become imperative to enhance our ability to leverage technology to offer courses remotely," he says in a statement.

The seven programs will cost between 15 to 20 percent less than traditional degree programs at the university, according to UH. The new programs will charge in-state tuition for all students, regardless of residency, and online students will not pay additional fees.

"These new offerings demonstrate our dedication to providing students financially accessible programs that emphasize innovation, technology, and experiential learning," says Paula Myrick Short, senior vice president for academic affairs and provost at UH. "Student success is our top priority, and as the need for flexible instruction and course delivery increases, we will meet that need."

The Bauer School has long been touted as one of the top schools for entrepreneurship in the country. In late 2020, UH announced that it received a $13 million donation from the Cyvia and Melvyn Wolff Family Foundation to go toward Bauer's well-known programs, as part of the school's $1.2 billion "Here We Go" initiative.

Dean Paul Pavlou of Bauer College of Business at the University of Houston shares how the school quickly pivoted to online classes and services amid the COVID-19 crisis — and how he's taking that tech into future semesters. Photo courtesy of the University of Houston

University of Houston business school dean says he's seen enrollment increase amid COVID-19

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About a month ago, the University of Houston announced it's waiving the fees for students during the summer semester. With classes across campus switching to online only in light of the pandemic and the country experiencing historic unemployment, UH made accessibility and affordability a priority.

For the C.T. Bauer College of Business, Dean Paul Pavlou realizes the opportunities that online classes bring — like the ability to serve more students.

"One advantage of online learning is it's very flexible — we aren't confined to the classroom," Pavlou says on this week's episode of the Houston Innovators Podcast. "We've opened up more sections and seats to make it easier for students to sign up."

Bauer has seen enrollment up 70 percent for the summer, and that could be for a few reasons — the waived fees, for instance. But also, with the mandates, many of students' summer plans have been canceled — like travel and internships — have freed up students' time to get ahead in their degree.

The school had just a week to turn its in-person courses into online programming, but that's not all that had to switch to virtual. Library and career services had to make changes as well.

"Career services was one of the most challenging — not because it's so difficult to move online, but because of the tight labor market," Pavlou says. "We were actually pretty close to 100 percent placement before the pandemic."

Ultimately, as he shares on the podcast, Pavlou sees some positive things coming out of this entire experience for the university. The school has been moving forward on creating online-only degree plans that will be more affordable.

"Even when we go back to the classroom eventually, we'll be able to use this technology to supplement the class and then we'll use the classroom time in a more productive fashion," says Pavlou. "In the long run, I see that this technology can help students who cannot physically come to the classroom and can actually get almost the whole experience."

And hey, students don't have to worry about traffic, parking, or sweaty walks across campus to get to class.

Stream the episode with Pavlow below or wherever you get you podcasts — just search for the "Houston Innovators Podcast."

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Houston biotech co. raises $11M to advance ALS drug development

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Houston-based clinical-stage biotechnology company Coya Therapeutics (NASDAQ: COYA) has raised $11.1 million in a private investment round.

India-based pharmaceuticals company Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Inc. led the round with a $10 million investment, according to a news release. New York-based investment firm Greenlight Capital, Coya’s largest institutional shareholder, contributed $1.1 million.

The funding was raised through a definitive securities purchase agreement for the purchase and sale of more than 2.5 million shares of Coya's common stock in a private placement at $4.40 per share.

Coya reports that it plans to use the proceeds to scale up manufacturing of low-dose interleukin-2 (IL-2), which is a component of its COYA 302 and will support the commercial readiness of the drug. COYA 302 enhances anti-inflammatory T cell function and suppresses harmful immune activity for treatment of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD), Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease.

The company received FDA acceptance for its investigational new drug application for COYA 302 for treating ALS and FTD this summer. Its ALSTARS Phase 2 clinical trial for ALS treatment launched this fall in the U.S. and Canada and has begun enrolling and dosing patients. Coya CEO Arun Swaminathan said in a letter to investors that the company also plans to advance its clinical programs for the drug for FTD therapy in 2026.

Coya was founded in 2021. The company merged with Nicoya Health Inc. in 2020 and raised $10 million in its series A the same year. It closed its IPO in January 2023 for more than $15 million. Its therapeutics uses innovative work from Houston Methodist's Dr. Stanley H. Appel.

New accelerator for AI startups to launch at Houston's Ion this spring

The Collectiv Foundation and Rice University have established a sports, health and wellness startup accelerator at the Ion District’s Collectiv, a sports-focused venture capital platform.

The AI Native Dual-Use Sports, Health & Wellness Accelerator, scheduled to formally launch in March, will back early-stage startups developing AI for the sports, health and wellness markets. Accelerator participants will gain access to a host of opportunities with:

Mentors
Advisers
Pro sports teams and leagues
University athletics programs
Health care systems
Corporate partners
VC firms
Pilot projects
University-based entrepreneurship and business initiatives

Accelerator participants will focus on sports tech verticals inlcuding performance and health, fan experience and media platforms, data and analytics, and infrastructure.

“Houston is quickly becoming one of the most important innovation hubs at the intersection of sports, health, and AI,” Ashley DeWalt, co-founder and managing partner of The Collectiv and founder of The Collectiv Foundation, said in a news release.

“By launching this platform with Rice University in the Ion District,” he added, “we are building a category-defining acceleration engine that gives founders access to world-class research, global sports properties, hospital systems, and venture capital. This is about turning sports-validated technology into globally scalable companies at a moment when the world’s attention is converging on Houston ahead of the 2026 World Cup.”

The Collectiv accelerator will draw on expertise from organizations such as the Rice-Houston Methodist Center for Human Performance, Rice Brain Institute, Rice Gateway Project and the Texas Medical Center.

“The combination of Rice University’s research leadership, Houston’s unmatched health ecosystem, and The Collectiv’s operator-driven investment platform creates a powerful acceleration engine,” Blair Garrou, co-founder and managing partner of the Mercury Fund VC firm and a senior adviser for The Collectiv, added in the release.

Additional details on programming, partners and application timelines are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.

4 Houston-area schools excel with best online degree programs in U.S.

Top of the Class

Four Houston-area universities have earned well-deserved recognition in U.S. News & World Report's just-released rankings of the Best Online Programs for 2026.

The annual rankings offer insight into the best American universities for students seeking a flexible and affordable way to attain a higher education. In the 2026 edition, U.S. News analyzed nearly 1,850 online programs for bachelor's degrees and seven master's degree disciplines: MBA, business (non-MBA), criminal justice, education, engineering, information technology, and nursing.

Many of these local schools are also high achievers in U.S. News' separate rankings of the best grad schools.

Rice University tied with Texas A&M University in College Station for the No. 3 best online master's in information technology program in the U.S., and its online MBA program ranked No. 21 nationally.

The online master's in nursing program at The University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston was the highest performing master's nursing degree in Texas, and it ranked No. 19 nationally.

Three different programs at The University of Houston were ranked among the top 100 nationwide:

No. 18 – Best online master's in education
No. 59 – Best online master's in business (non-MBA)
No. 89 – Best online bachelor's program

The University of Houston's Clear Lake campus ranked No. 65 nationally for its online master's in education program.

"Online education continues to be a vital path for professionals, parents, and service members seeking to advance their careers and broaden their knowledge with necessary flexibility," said U.S. News education managing editor LaMont Jones in a press release. "The 2026 Best Online Programs rankings are an essential tool for prospective students, providing rigorous, independent analysis to help them choose a high-quality program that aligns with their personal and professional goals."

A little farther outside Houston, two more universities – Sam Houston State University in Huntsville and Texas A&M University in College Station – stood out for their online degree programs.

Sam Houston State University

No. 5 – Best online master's in criminal justice
No. 30 – Best online master's in information technology
No. 36 – Best online master's in education
No. 77 – Best online bachelor's program
No. 96 – Best online master's in business (non-MBA)

Texas A&M University

No. 3 – Best online master's in information technology (tied with Rice)
No. 3 – Best online master's in business (non-MBA)
No. 8 – Best online master's in education
No. 9 – Best online master's in engineering
No. 11 – Best online bachelor's program

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This article originally appeared on CultureMap.com.

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