We made it to Friday, y’all!

I want to highlight a few things before you scroll.

👉 The University of North Texas is losing so much money due to immigration policy, which has tanked its international student enrollment (which accounted for 18% of its student body in the 2023-24 school year), that it has cut more than 70 courses and majors to make up for the loss. Yikes! Check out a video from our political reporter about this down below.

👉 This past November, I featured Scandinavian gift shop The Wooden Spoon in my Monday Don’t Sleep On series, and mentioned it was located in a historic house—the oldest in Plano. Well, that building, known as the Forman House, is now on the market for $1.3 million. Learn more about the piece of history here, and let me know what you think should happen with it next.

👉 No Kings protests are back this weekend. Texas alone will host more than 100. For locations and times, check out our ongoing protest list here. If you plan to attend one, send along any photos you’d like to share. Not sure if these protests mean anything? Read this.

Joi Louviere

Senior Newsletter Editor, COURIER DFW

Fort Worth, it’s time to get lit: An adult book fair is coming March 29

Get Lit: Grown-Up Book Fair™️ is coming to Fort Worth on March 29! (A.C./Unsplash+)

By Sam Cohen

Picture this: It’s a beautiful spring day. You’re wearing your favorite outfit. You got one of the good sandwiches for lunch. You have a crisp $5 bill in your pocket, and it’s your turn to browse the Scholastic Book Fair. What could possibly be better than that?

If, like me, you’ve been chasing this exact feeling since adolescence, you’ll be equally delighted to learn that one local author is bringing this dream to life for adults across Dallas-Fort Worth. Rachel Lewis founded the Get Lit: Grown-Up Book Fair as a way to bring people together to shop, eat, drink, and discuss books. “It is the nostalgia of an elementary school book fair but we have leveled it up to adults. Kids are welcome and they can come, but it’s really focused on the grown ups. Kids have all their fun things, we need something fun for us, too,” Lewis told Texas Today.

And fun is exactly what every Get Lit: Grown-Up Book Fair includes. Each event is hosted at a different brewery or distillery in DFW and sells a variety of books, merchandise, jewelry, trinkets, food, beverages, and more. Local authors have the chance to highlight their books and bring them to a wider audience, and readers have an opportunity to connect with other like-minded individuals.

Get details on the Sunday + April 10 fairs

🛋️ So long, sofas: Beloved 80-year-old DFW furniture chain Weir’s is closing its doors. Going-out-of-business sales have already started at its four locations, and the stores will remain open until all the inventory is sold. (Culture Map Dallas)

👮 $51 million security: Dallas has received $51 million in federal grants, and that’s just for security during the World Cup. The money will be allocated for barricades, cameras, and officer overtime. (CBS News)

🏳️‍⚧️ Trans women & the Olympics: Trans women will be barred from competing in women’s events during the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games due to a new International Olympic Committee agreement to align with President Donald Trump’s executive order threatening to deny visas for organizations that allowed trans athletes in women’s sports. (Dallas Morning News)

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🪢 Happy Hookers turn 10: For a decade, a group of seniors called the Happy Hookers has been turning plastic grocery bags into sleeping mats for unhoused folks. On Monday, past and present members will get together to celebrate the group’s anniversary and will teach the public how to make mats. To attend, get the details here. (NBC 5)

🛻 Trucks for Pups: Teen-run nonprofit gets animal shelters the supplies and resources they need, offering service hours to volunteers. Learn more about the mission and the Dallas high school student behind it. (Fox 4)

🥐 La Madeline is kid-approved: After a Dallas 9-year-old left a five-star review of the French bistro La Madeline in her school’s newspaper, her father posted it on his LinkedIn page, drawing the company’s attention. See what happened next. (NBC 5)