SMU students outraged as school orders 9/11 memorial flags to be moved — plus more morning headlines

Here are the top headlines of the morning. [Here are the top headlines of the morning.] August 02,  2017 By [Dennis Jansen]( Good morning! Here is a look at the top headlines as we start the day. 🌧️ Weather: Mostly cloudy with [a 70% chance for rain](. 86° 🔎 Prefer the online view? [It's here](. A 2010 file photo of a 9/11 memorial at Southern Methodist University. (David Woo/The Dallas Morning News) Education SMU students outraged that 9/11 memorial flags must be moved Southern Methodist University officials revised a policy Tuesday that aimed [to protect students from "harmful or triggering" messages]( after a dispute erupted over an annual 9/11 installation that students had planned for the heart of campus. Nearly 3,000 flags have been placed on Southern Methodist University's Dallas Hall Lawn every year since 2010, but the group responsible for the display, Young Americans for Freedom, was recently told it must be moved. Tackling those bills: College tuition payment due? Here are [six last-minute strategies for making the grade](. Funding woes: Dallas ISD trustees to consider whether schools need more money or [if they are simply wasting tax dollars](. The students: When the worst elementary school in Dallas closes, [what happens to the kids?]( Advertisement A mother holds her newborn baby at a hospital in Corpus Christi, Texas.  (Michael Zamora/Corpus Christi Caller-Times) Texas Legislature Texas House votes to save maternal mortality task force The Texas House unanimously gave initial approval Monday to four similar bills that would continue the state's Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Task Force until 2023. The task force's work is critical, proponents of the measures said, considering that [Texas' maternal death rate has skyrocketed in recent years](. Between 2010 and 2014, Texas' maternal mortality rate doubled from 18.6 deaths to 35.8 deaths per 100,000 live births -- the highest rate in the developed world. A new venture: A joint venture between two Dallas-based health care providers that aims to deliver home health services [to nearly 60 of Texas' more than 250 counties]( took effect Tuesday. Hospital closing: The Kindred Hospital at White Rock in Dallas [will close its doors mid-September]( and all positions at the facility will be eliminated. A historical undertaking: How Dallas dealt polio a massive blow by [vaccinating 900,000 people in two days](. People cross the border in Laredo, Texas to Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas. People cross the border in Laredo, Texas to Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas. (Courtney Pedroza/Special Contributor) Crime Man who was kidnapped after deportation is freed following payments, 5 days of beatings An Ohio man who was kidnapped last week after being deported to Mexico was released Sunday night [following five days of beatings and starvation](. Francisco Narciso was released after his girlfriend in Painesville wired two payments totaling nearly $4,000. ICE has been criticized for deporting people and depositing them in Nuevo Laredo, where crime is rampant and deportees are commonly targeted. ICE has not responded to numerous requests for answers about why Laredo is used as a deportation point. Waco: Authorities in Waco say one person is dead and a police officer was critically injured when [a vehicle struck and pinned the policeman Tuesday](, requiring other officers to lift the vehicle to free him. Dallas: A driver abducted a man at gunpoint early Tuesday before [shooting him and ditching him across town]( in a possible case of mistaken identity, Dallas police said. Watch: Crash flips Fort Worth officer, [but he gets up, arrests DWI suspect](. Advertisement (Jason Frye/Special Contributor) Photo of the Morning Termas Geométricas, a series of 17 naturally fed hot springs, sits snug in a narrow, steep-[]walled valley in southern Chile. This was a scene from [Jason Frye's adventures in Chile]( that rivaled Patagonia. Russia's President Vladimir Putin, left, and U.S. President Donald Trump talk during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany. (Mikhail Klimentyev/Russian Presidential Press and Information Office) Around The Site Commentary highlights - The basics: [Explaining Russia to Trump](. - Mistaken: Paul Ryan went to Texas to scope out a border wall [and got so much wrong](. - Options: Texas congressman's ['smart' border wall alternative]( deserves consideration. - Top dog: Finalists for Dallas' top dog catcher [need a good answer to this question](. - Progress: [The mayor picked the right guy]( to finally deliver that forever-promised Trinity River park. - Botched: Will the Texas Legislature perform[ deadly surgery on our trees?]( - Privacy: 3 reasons Texas must protect [the privacy of women and children in bathrooms](. - More: [From museum masses to prostitution online](, everything that went right and wrong last week. - Your voice: [Submit a letter to the editor](. - Newsletter: [Sign up for our commentary newsletter, On Point](. Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo smiles as he is recognized by the Senate at the Texas Capitol in Austin, Wednesday, May 3, 2017. (Stephen Spillman/Special Contributor) Finally... The challenge Troy Aikman says Tony Romo's going to have[ one 'real disadvantage' to start his broadcast career](. Advertisement 👋 That's all for this morning! For up-to-the-minute news and analysis, check out [DallasNews.com](. 💖 Share the love! If you like this newsletter, please forward this email to a friend and [check out our other newsletters here](. 📧 Do you have feedback? Send your thoughts, questions, praise and corrections to [djansen@dallasnews.com](mailto:djansen@dallasnews.com?subject=Newsletter%20Feedback). STAY CONNECTED WITH US  [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Twitter]( [LinkedIn]( [Tumblr]( [Google]( [Ello]( [Ello](  [OTHER NEWSLETTERS]( [SUBSCRIPTION OPTIONS]( [Unsubscribe](  |  [Manage Preferences](  |  [Privacy Policy](  |  [Contact](  |  [Advertise]( You received this message because you signed up for this Dallas Morning News newsletter or it was forwarded to you. Copyright 2017 - [The Dallas Morning News]( | [508 Young St., Dallas, TX 75202](#)