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This (Last) Week in The Legislature: More Questions Than Answer as Session Comes to a Close
The last full week of the Texas legislative session ended with final decisions being made on several important pieces of legislation, but going into the session’s final weekend, major bills relating to school finance, private school vouchers, pensions for retired educators, the future of higher education, and more are still undecided. Public Education: Vouchers Make a Comeback, School Finance Bill...
Read MoreJune 28, 2021: SBOE vetoes 4 new charter schools, special session date set
SBOE vetoes 4 of 7 new charter applicants The commissioner of education approved seven new charter applicants in June, and the State Board of Education last week had the opportunity to hear from each to determine whether to allow or veto each application. After these hearings, SBOE denied four of...
Read MoreTEA releases guidance on remote instruction options for districts
The Texas Education Agency released a document outlining the rules and procedures needed for districts to offer remote instruction — outside of the Texas Virtual School Network (TVSN) — for the coming school year. With a few rare exceptions, these remote students are not eligible for Average Daily Attendance funding...
Read MoreGovernor sets special session date for July 8
Last Tuesday, Gov. Greg Abbott set a date for a special legislative session: July 8. Abbott did not set the agenda for what can be considered in that special session yet. But he previously has stated that the session will at least cover Senate Bill 7, the voter suppression bill...
Read MoreSBOE vetoes 4 of 7 new charter applicants
The commissioner of education approved seven new charter applicants in June, and the State Board of Education last week had the opportunity to hear from each to determine whether to allow or veto each application. After these hearings, SBOE denied four of the seven applicants. Despite evidence that public schools...
Read MoreJune 21, 2021: Gov. signals more legislation on race curriculum; Local unions win pay raises; Take action to stop charter expansion
Texas AFT will be holding its virtual state convention on Friday and Saturday. You can follow highlights and news from the convention on our Facebook and Twitter accounts. Tell our State Board of Education to reject charter expansion One...
Read MoreJune 14, 2021: The intersection of immigration and education advocacy; Immigrant Heritage Month; Voter registration
Texas AFT Higher Education Committee explores the 'Intersection of Immigration and Education' “We do this work because the experiences of our students and our wider community, and our work can not be separated.” That sentiment from Karen Reyes, an Austin...
Read MoreLocal unions successful in winning pay raises, retention bonuses
Unlike 2019’s state legislation that sent new money to school districts for required pay increases, local school boards are responsible for all compensation changes. Our local unions have been working on campaigns for the past two months pushing for higher pay for all school employees. Here’s a list of recent...
Read MoreSBOE meets next week to consider new charter application
And...Court case invalidates bill giving charters property tax breaks on leases Seven new charter applications have been approved by the commissioner of education and are up for final approval or veto by the elected State Board of Education next week. It’s important to remember that once a charter is approved...
Read MoreGovernor: ‘More must be done’ to ban Critical Race Theory
Abbott says he will add the issue to a special session As if HB 3979 wasn’t bad enough already, Gov. Greg Abbott announced last week that he will add the bill’s topic—bans on controversial subjects, particularly those around racism, from being taught in the classroom—to an impending special session. That...
Read MoreLocal Leader Spotlight: Wanda Longoria, President of Northside AFT
Wanda Longoria Historically, Northside ISD was a small, rural district in the San Antonio area. In the past 20 years, though, it has expanded to the fourth-largest district in Texas. In this rapidly changing pocket of Bexar County, the school board has remained largely the same, with members having served...
Read MoreTexas AFT Higher Education Committee Explores the Intersection of Immigration and Education
“We do this work because the experiences of our students and our wider community and our work cannot be separated.” That sentiment from Karen Reyes, an Austin ISD teacher and Education Austin board member, framed a virtual discussion on immigration and education hosted by Texas AFT’s Committee on Higher Education...
Read MoreJune 7, 2021: TEA releases remaining federal relief dollars to school districts … with a catch
TEA releases remaining federal relief dollars to school districts — with a catch After months of urging by our union and Texas education organizations, the Texas Education Agency announced Thursday that districts could begin applying for their shares of the remaining federal COVID-19 relief owed to Texas schools. This...
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