The latest education news from The Texas Tribune.
UPDATED: A measure taking aim at the firm that develops the state's standardized tests briefly stalled legislation reducing high-stakes exams for elementary and middle school students before it finally passed the Texas House on Tuesday. Full Story
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Two years ago, lawmakers couldn't find the money they needed to run the government they had promised their voters. Now they have the money — and a completely different set of political problems. Full Story
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Voters asked lawmakers to cut down on the high-stakes standardized tests in schools and to replace some of the budget cuts made in 2011. Will they soon be asking why lawmakers made it easier to get a high school diploma? Full Story
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As the Texas Legislature looks to overhaul the state’s standardized testing program amid outcry from parents and school leaders, state lawmakers have focused their criticism on the company that develops the tests. Full Story
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Batheja on a House budget without vouchers or Medicaid expansion, Aguilar on obstacles to a new power plant in El Paso, Permenter on deer breeder regulations, E. Smith’s interview with San Antonio’s Castro twins, Galbraith on proposals for new underground water reservoirs, Root finds holes in a UT regent's appointment files, M. Smith on a planned school rating system that defied recommendations, Murphy maps oil and gas disposal wells in Texas, Dehn on objections to a bigger Medicaid program and Hamilton on efforts to lure gun makers to Texas: The best of our best for the week of April 1-5, 2013. Full Story
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Sen. Dan Patrick's Senate Bill 2 is the most ambitious attempt to expand the state’s charter school system since it was established in 1995. It will have to pass a Legislature that defeated more modest proposals two years ago. Full Story
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Texas Appleseed and the Brazos County branch of the NAACP have filed a federal complaint against Bryan ISD, saying the school district's reliance on ticketing as a form of discipline "disproportionately harms" black students. Full Story
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The president of Rice University on the declining reputation of higher education, the difference between public and private universities, and the future of academic research. Full Story
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Sam Houston State University administrators credit a nationally recognized advising center for moving their graduation rates in the right direction. Full Story
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Texas Southern University has the state's lowest graduation rate, but TSU President John Rudley says that steps are being taken to put the university on the right track. Full Story
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UTEP's graduation rates are among the worst in the state, but President Diana Natalicio is adamant that the metric doesn't accurately reflect the institution. Full Story
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The insiders think Ron Paul's biggest obstacle is Ron Paul, are pessimistic about Texas Democrats, and predict Democratic primaries focused on education and Republican primaries focused on spending and taxes. Full Story
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In a rare move in a state where the football field is hallowed turf, Premont ISD has suspended all athletics — including football — to improve its struggling finances. But the decision has brought little backlash from the community in South Texas, perhaps a measure of how dire the school's circumstances have become. Full Story
Tan and Root on the Texas presidential candidates returning to the state where Rick Perry started his campaign, Philpott on Perry's swipes at Mitt Romney, Ramshaw on Griffin Perry's tweets, M. Smith on the next round of fights over student testing, E. Smith's TribLive interview with Michael Quinn Sullivan, yours truly on the sliding primary election calendar, Hamilton on higher-education efforts to bolster the Texas work force, Grissom's interview with John Raley, Galbraith on the greenhouse gas wars and Aguilar on making it easier for immigrants to return to the U.S.: The best of our best content from January 9 to 13, 2012. Full Story
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In this episode of Weekend Insider, Executive Editor Ross Ramsey describes where Texas' legislative redistricting stands, and reporter Morgan Smith explains how Texas became the industry leader in for-profit alternative teacher certification. Full Story
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This interactive shows the dramatic drop in employment at Texas state agencies from the third quarter of fiscal year 2011 to the last quarter, right before $15 billion in cuts to the 2012-2013 biennium budget kicked in Sept. 1. Full Story
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The GOP congressman from Lubbock on Gov. Rick Perry, cuts in direct payments that could be headed for Texas farmers, his hopes for the supercommittee and what the 2012 elections will say about Americans' view of the economy. Full Story
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Every time a student drops out of public school, taxpayers save money. That’s one fewer student, at an annual savings of more than $11,000 per year from state and local sources. Full Story
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As the field of candidates shapes up for the March 2012 primaries, a new — at least since last election cycle — breed of GOP hopeful is emerging: the education Republican. Full Story
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Full video of the keynote speech by former U.S. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings in the Public and Higher Education track at the 2011 Texas Tribune Festival. Full Story