Morgan Smith

Morgan Smith was a reporter at the Tribune from 2009 to 2018, covering politics, public education and inequality. In 2013, she received a National Education Writers Association award for “Death of a District,” a series on school closures. After earning a bachelor’s degree in English from Wellesley College, she moved to Austin in 2008 to enter law school at the University of Texas. A San Antonio native, her work has also appeared in Slate, where she spent a year as an editorial intern in Washington D.C.

Past Contributions

Schools Cope as Classes Expand and Staffs Shrink

By Morgan Smith March 16, 2012

As state spending contracted in the 2011-12 school year, classroom sizes ballooned. And the fastest-growing school districts have been hit the hardest by larger classes. Full Story

Credit: Jennifer Whitney
The Freshman 30

By Morgan Smith and Julián Aguilar March 16, 2012

No matter how the elections swing, one thing is certain about the 83rd legislative session: There will be a lot of new faces. Full Story

Credit: Bob Daemmrich
An Update on Who's Not Coming Back Next Year

By Morgan Smith March 13, 2012

With the filing deadline passed and the electoral maps finalized at last, we've updated the 2012 quit list. Full Story

Credit: Muliadi Soenaryo
Special Prosecutor Appointed in Morton Case

By Morgan Smith March 13, 2012

A Houston lawyer with a long list of high profile clients has been tapped to be the prosecutor in the court of inquiry into possible misconduct in the case of Michael Morton, who was wrongfully convicted of murder in 1987. Full Story

Credit: Spencer Selvidge
Perry Meets With Leader of Agency He Wants to Abolish

By Reeve Hamilton and Morgan Smith March 8, 2012

After U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan praised Texas' in-state tuition policy for illegal immigrants, he and Gov. Rick Perry met to discuss a possible waiver for the No Child Left Behind Act. Full Story
Interactive: 25,000 Fewer Public School Employees

By Morgan Smith and Ryan Murphy March 8, 2012

Public schools in Texas employ about 25,000 less employees than they did at this time last year. Use this interactive to see what happened in your school district. Full Story

Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman
The Brief: March 2, 2012

By Morgan Smith and David Muto March 2, 2012

With May 29 primaries in place, the political jockeying has begun. Full Story

Credit: Caleb Bryant Miller
Texas Lawmakers to Study School Finance

By Morgan Smith Feb. 29, 2012

As more than 500 school districts sue the state over how it funds its public schools, Texas lawmakers announced today they would form an interim committee to study school finance. Full Story

Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera
An Updated Guide to the School Finance Lawsuits

By Morgan Smith Feb. 29, 2012

The latest school finance lawsuit following the state's $5.4 billion cut to public schools suggests that schools need more competition. Full Story

Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman
In Fifth School Finance Suit, A Focus on Efficiency

By Morgan Smith Feb. 24, 2012

A group of parents in Texas filed the fifth school finance lawsuit in Austin today, focusing not on whether the state adequately pays for schools but rather if the way it distributes money is efficient and equitable. Full Story

Credit: Todd Wiseman