This Texas higher education plan outlines the goals of closing the gaps in higher education participation and success, in educational excellence, and in funded research over the next 15 years. Major goals include the following: (1) closing the gaps in participation rates across Texas to add 500,000 more students; (2) increasing by 50 percent the number of degrees, certificates and other identifiable student successes from high quality programs; (3) substantially increasing the number of nationally recognized programs or services at colleges and universities in Texas; and (4) increasing the level of federal science and engineering research funding to Texas institutions by 50 percent to $1.3 billion. Targets and strategies for each goal are provided, as is an overall vision for Texas higher education. One of the strategies for the state for closing the gaps in participation is to make the Recommended High School Program the standard curriculum in Texas public high schools and require it for admission to Texas public universities by 2008. To assure progress towards these goals, the state can develop benchmarks and measures to assess progress toward goals of the plan by each institution and by higher education as a whole. To help increase participation in higher education for all Texans, the amount of grants and scholarships must be increased. (JA)