Betsy DeVos is considering allowing federal funds to arm teachers. Texas may have given her the idea.
A Trump administration official told Education Week that Texas first raised the possibility of using federal grants for that purpose. Full Story
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Aliyya Swaby
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Aliyya Swaby was the public education reporter for The Texas Tribune, where she worked from 2016 to 2021. Previously she worked at the hyperlocal nonprofit New Haven Independent, where she covered education, zoning and transit for two years. After graduating from Yale University in 2013, she spent a year freelance reporting in Panama on social issues affecting black Panamanian communities. She was an Education Writers Association finalist in 2017 for beat reporting and a Livingston Awards finalist in 2019 for a series on school desegregation.
Past Contributions
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![An educator partakes in a simulated shooting as part of a training for school marshals. School marshals are school staff trained and armed to take out a threat to their campus.]()
Credit: Rachel Zein for The Texas Tribune -
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick urges Teacher Retirement System not to raise health care premiums
Patrick said funding for health care benefits under TRS-Care should be the responsibility of the Legislature and "not fall on the shoulders of our retired teachers." Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick in Austin on Jan 9, 2017.]()
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Texas school districts receive first official A-F grades. Look up how your district did here.
For the first time Wednesday, Texas school districts received official ratings that show their performance on a scale from A through F, perpetuating a debate on whether the new system is more accessible for parents. Full Story
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“Harvey’s not over”: School’s about to start — but the trauma from Hurricane Harvey lingers
Nearly a year after Hurricane Harvey submerged Port Arthur, students are still fighting its effects as they return to school. Full Story
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![Darby Dugay, 17, sits for a portrait in the bedroom of her FEMA mobile home after Hurricane Harvey flooded her family's house in Port Arthur, TX. Dugay has focused much of her energy into sports and marching band as her family continues to rebuild from Hurricane Harvey.]()
Credit: Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Texas will soon release A-F grades for schools. Educators are organizing in opposition.
With a week to go before the state releases the first official grades for school districts, school superintendents have already begun their campaign against the system. Full Story
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![Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath discusses the scope of financial losses to Texas public schools affected by Hurricane Harvey at a House Public Education Committee hearing at the state Capitol on October 12, 2017.]()
Credit: Erika Rich for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Education Agency starts contracting process for special education overhaul
The Texas Education Agency is now soliciting applications for more than $20 million in grants to help school districts overhaul special education after a federal investigation found it had effectively denied students with disabilities needed services. Full Story
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![Texas Education Agency officials Penny Schwinn and Justin Porter listen to testimony at a hearing on special education in Richardson on April 16, 2018.]()
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Texas attorney general demands school district hand over controversial human sexuality curriculum
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton demanded Fort Worth ISD Superintendent Kent Scribner turn over a copy of a sixth-grade health curriculum that includes lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity. Full Story
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![Fort Worth ISD Superintendent Kent Scribner listens to speakers at a school board meeting on Tuesday, May 10, 2016.]()
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Southwest Key may partner with Brownsville ISD to educate migrant students
The private contractor housing migrant children separated from their families is considering partnering with a charter district it founded and with a local school district to educate kids in its Brownsville facilities. Full Story
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![Casa Padre, an immigrant shelter for unaccompanied minors, is pictured in Brownsville on June 19, 2018.]()
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Special education advocates worry Texas governor's school safety plan will accelerate school-to-prison pipeline
As a recent spate of school shootings has provoked nationwide panic, some advocates and parents are worried school and state officials' response to the May massacre at Santa Fe High School could harm some students more than it protects them. Full Story
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![Deputies from the Harris County Sheriff's Office on the scene of Santa Fe High School, where a shooting occurred Friday morning.]()
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More standardized testing woes in Texas? A high-performing school says over 100 students got zeros on essays
The Texas Education Agency and the state's main testing vendor are investigating how more than 100 students in a high-performing Houston-area high school received zeros on their English essays. Full Story
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