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Kiah Collier was a reporter for the ProPublica-Texas Tribune investigative initiative from 2020 through 2023. She previously worked at the Tribune as a reporter and associate editor, covering energy and the environment through the lens of state government and politics. Kiah has reported for numerous other publications across Texas since 2010, including the Austin American-Statesman and the Houston Chronicle. Her beats also have included government and politics, public education and business. Kiah’s work has been honored with numerous prizes, including a George Foster Peabody Award, a Gerald Loeb Award, the Knight-Risser Prize for Western Environmental Journalism, the National Edward R. Murrow Award for best investigation and the AAAS Kavli Science Journalism Award. A seventh-generation Texan, she grew up in the Austin area and graduated with high honors from the University of Texas at Austin with degrees in journalism and philosophy.
More than 20 school districts have turned down state grant money to bolster their pre-kindergarten programs because the amount offered to them isn’t enough to cover required improvements. Full Story
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Elementary and middle school students appear to be performing better on required state exams after four years of stagnant scores. But the improvement is compared to old passing standards that no longer apply. Full Story
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After the state decided standardized test results for 5th and 8th graders were unreliable, it said failing students didn't have to retake the tests to advance a grade. But districts were given wide discretion on what to do next. Full Story
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Two months after lawyers for the Republic of Turkey filed a complaint against Harmony Public Schools, a high-ranking state representative has asked the Texas Attorney General to investigate allegations against the state’s largest charter school network. Full Story
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Nearly 6,000 Texas high school students were cleared for graduation in 2015 even though they didn't pass all of their end-of-course exams, according to data the Texas Education Agency posted online this spring but did not announce. Full Story
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The state will divvy up $116 million among 578 school districts and charters to bolster high-quality pre-kindergarten programs, Education Commissioner Mike Morath announced Tuesday. Full Story
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The oil bust is threatening to deal a serious financial blow to schools in oil-producing regions across the state — particularly if it lingers. Full Story
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Volkswagen has agreed to pay Texas $50 million as part of what is being described as the largest auto-related class-action settlement in U.S. history. Full Story
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As displeasure with Texas’ standardized testing regime mounts, all eyes are on a special panel the Legislature created to figure out whether to scrap the widely reviled STAAR exam. Full Story
Fifth and eighth graders who failed STAAR exams won’t be held back a grade or required to retest later this month, Education Commissioner Mike Morath announced. Full Story