School bonds failed across Texas. What happens now?
Texas voters rejected 20 of 35 bond propositions put forward by 19 school districts in November. Full Story
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![East Central ISD Superintendent Roland Toscano says that addressing overcrowding, safety concerns and teacher retention requires urgent action.]()
Credit: Michael Cirlos for the San Antonio Report -
Texas Legislature will approve school vouchers and boost public education funds next year, Abbott says
Last year, Abbott refused to give public schools a major raise without passing a voucher program. His tone was more conciliatory after Election Day. Full Story
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![Governor Greg Abbott speaks about school choice during a visit to the Kingdom Life Academy private school on Wednesday November 6, 2024, in Tyler.]()
Credit: Michael Cavazos for The Texas Tribune -
Houston ISD superintendent didn’t illegally funnel state money to out-of-state schools, TEA says
The Texas Education Agency found that checks mailed to Miles’ charter school network in Colorado were eventually deposited into the network’s Texas account. Full Story
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![Mike Miles, the state-appointed superintendent of Houston ISD, discusses public education in Texas' largest city with Jacob Carpenter, team leader of the Houston Landing, at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin on Sept. 23, 2023.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Texas school districts say upgrades to the state’s student data reporting system could hurt their funding
The Texas Education Agency says there’s time to fix problems before officially reported data is used to determine how much money districts get. Full Story
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![A school bus drives past the Texas Capitol Complex as State Board of Education members hold a meeting in the William B. Travis building on Nov. 17, 2023, in Austin.]()
Credit: Julius Shieh/The Texas Tribune -
Texas schools are hiring more teachers without traditional training. They hope the state will pay to prepare them.
Schools are hiring instructors with different types of backgrounds to deal with critical staff shortages. Full Story
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![First year educator Amanda McIntyre interacts with her students at Freeport Intermediate School in Freeport, Texas, on August 16,2024. She recently completed her teacher apprenticeship program.]()
Credit: Douglas Sweet Jr. for The Texas Tribune -
Rising costs and stagnant state funds pushed this West Texas school district to the financial brink
The Ector County school district boosted student learning but now faces financial uncertainty. It closed schools and cut costs to stay afloat, but it won’t slash teacher jobs. Full Story
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![Bonham Middle School students enter the school’s cafeteria for lunch Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Texas schools got billions in federal pandemic relief. It is coming to an end as the school year starts.
Educators say they’ll struggle to keep the programs they created with those funds, highlighting their precarious situation without more state help. Full Story
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![Students at Lorenzo G Alarcon Elementary School open boxes of school supplies paid for with Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds in San Elizario, Texas on July 23, 2024.]()
Credit: Justin Hamel for The Texas Tribune -
Houston ISD superintendent accused of funneling tax dollars out of state
A state lawmaker and Houston residents urge the Texas Education Agency to investigate whether the state-appointed superintendent improperly sent public funds to out-of-state charter schools. Full Story
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![Mike Miles, the state-appointed superintendent of Houston ISD, discusses public education in Texas' largest city with Jacob Carpenter, team leader of the Houston Landing, at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin on Sept. 23, 2023.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
School voucher supporters bask in primary wins, say goals are within reach
Gov. Greg Abbott called the results “an unmistakable message.” His allies said the state is “closer than ever” to a voucher program. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott speaks to students, parents and staff at Nolan Catholic High School in Fort Worth while trying to build support for school vouchers legislation on April 19, 2023.]()
Credit: Amanda McCoy/Fort Worth Star-Telegram via REUTERS -
Texas launches new property tax incentive program to lure new businesses
The Jobs, Energy, Technology, and Innovation program cuts property taxes for new manufacturing, research and development facilities. It replaces a shuttered program criticized for its impact on school finance. Full Story
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![Construction workers work on an office building on the corner or Metric and Parmer in Austin on June 18, 2020.]()
Credit: Allie Goulding/The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ new school safety law mostly addresses the Justice Department’s advice. But funding fixes is still an issue.
Lawmakers passed House Bill 3 last year to address some of the issues that led to the botched police response during the Uvalde school shooting. Full Story
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![Memorial crosses outside Robb Elementary in Uvalde on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024. The now-closed school was the site of the May 2022 mass shooting that left 19 children and two teachers dead.]()
Credit: Chris Stokes for The Texas Tribune -
Struggling to find teachers close to home, some Texas schools are looking overseas for help
Public schools got little help from lawmakers this year to address the state’s chronic teacher shortage, so they’ve turned to other creative solutions — like leaning on cultural exchange programs to recruit international teachers. Full Story
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![Ilona Cabudsan in front of Aldine ISD's Hambrick Middle School, in Houston, on Dec. 18, 2023.]()
Credit: Joseph Bui for The Texas Tribune -
Texas superintendents say lack of school safety funding may lead to budget cuts
The fourth special legislative session this year ended without any increased funding for school safety — even though public schools have complained for months they don’t have enough money to meet new safety mandates approved this year. Full Story
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![An Austin Independent School District police vehicle sits outside of McCallum High School in Austin, on Dec. 28, 2012.]()
Credit: Tamir Kalifa for The Texas Tribune -
After school voucher bill falls apart, supporters and opponents get ready for future fights
The Texas House’s vote to block education savings accounts disappointed voucher advocates and likely spelled doom for additional public school funding. Both bands say they’ll keep pushing for their priorities during next year’s primary elections and the 2025 legislative session. Full Story
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![Students enter a classroom at one of the 11 Houston-area campuses of Yes Prep, a public charter school system serving 7,000 low-income students.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
With GOP priorities unfinished, Texas House plans to wrap fourth special session Tuesday
The decision to end work Tuesday leaves long odds for bills to boost school safety funding and make sure that election challenges don’t delay the implementation of property tax cuts, teacher pension raises and infrastructure spending. Full Story
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![House Speaker Dade Phelan stands at the dias during a special legislative session at the state capitol in Austin, Texas, on Nov. 17, 2023.]()
Credit: Julius Shieh/The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate passes its own school safety funding bill, but little time remains to get it across the finish line
Senate Bill 5 would send an extra $800 million to public schools for security upgrades over the next two years. But the measure is at risk of becoming the latest casualty of the rift between the Texas House and Senate. Full Story
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![A DPS police vehicle sits outside of Dalton Elementary School as students wait outside their classroom on the first day of school in Uvalde on Sept. 6, 2022.]()
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Gov. Greg Abbott endorses reelection bids of 58 House members who voted for school vouchers
No members who voted against Abbott’s top legislative priority received the governor’s backing. Full Story
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![Gov. Abbott speaks to parents during an event hosted by the Parent Empowerment Coalition at Covenant Christian Academy in McAllen on April 12, 2023.]()
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Texas House votes to remove school vouchers from massive education bill
The outcome was an embarrassment to Gov. Greg Abbott, who spent seven months lobbying two dozen Republicans who signaled opposition to vouchers in April. Full Story
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![Bonham Middle School students enter the school’s cafeteria for lunch Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa. The school is part of the Ector County Independent School District.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
School voucher critics remain largely unswayed during Texas House hearing
House Bill 1, which stagnated during the previous special session, finally received a hearing in the lower chamber, a crucial step that will decide whether the proposal gets a full vote. Full Story
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![Nimitz Middle School teachers Selena Olivares, center left, and Pricilla Martinez lead their 7th grade English Language Arts and Reading (ELAR) in an activity Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa. Martinez said that due to the increased amount of families moving to the Permian Basin, they sometimes teach 38 to 40 kids per class. “It’s been six weeks and I still don’t know all of their names… Its embarrassing to me,” Martinez said.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
The Texas House’s new priority education bill offers concessions to sway voucher skeptics
The revised bill promises a significant funding increase for public schools and academic accountability measures for students participating in the proposed voucher program, two of the biggest requests from voucher opponents. Full Story
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![State Rep. Brad Buckley, R-Killeen, on the House floor on May 7, 2019.]()
Credit: Juan Figueroa/The Texas Tribune