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SBEC Preview: HB 2 in Action 

The State Board for Educator Certification will meet in Austin on Thursday and Friday, Sept. 18-19.  The meeting will take place over two days with many discussion items and will include a new component to the proceedings.  The first order of business will be for the new Temporary Suspension Committee...

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Sept. 12, 2025: Nickels & Dimes

Friday, September 12, 2025 Nickels and dimes Every back-to-school season, public school teachers and staff across the country spend hundreds of dollars out-of-pocket on food and classroom supplies for their students. This year is no exception — and the burden has been made more acute by recent federal cuts.   ...

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Sept. 5, 2025: The No STAAR State

Friday, September 5, 2025 The No STAAR State  On Wednesday, the Texas Legislature closed out its second special session by passing a bill that will replace STAAR with a through-year testing regimen that will mean more but (allegedly) shorter tests for students. Lawmakers have begun their celebratory pronouncements. Rep. Brad...

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Texas AFT members fight to bring benefits of HB 2 to their districts 

House Bill 2, the Legislature’s school finance bill, went into full effect on Monday, Sept. 1. Even before enactment day, though, Texas AFT members and organizers have been hard at work in districts across the state to make sure the funding increases from the Teacher Retention Allotment (TRA) and the...

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SBOE Preview: Social Studies Redux 

Eyes on the Board

The State Board of Education (SBOE) will convene in Austin on Monday, Sept. 8, at 1 p.m. CT. The board is set to meet throughout the week, ending on Friday, Sept. 10, and will take up several important items, most notably, a framework for the anticipated social studies content area...

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SB 12: The ‘Parents’ Bill of Rights’ Deep Dive 

On Friday, June 20, 2025, Gov. Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 12 into law. The law took effect on Monday, Sept. 1, 2025, and aims to reshape public school practices related to parental rights, educator responsibilities, and the role of diversity and identity in pre-K-12 schools.

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Aug. 29, 2025: Labor Day

Friday, August 29, 2025 This coming Monday is Labor Day, an annual recognition of union members who make up the American labor movement and who have worked tirelessly over decades to build a fairer, safer, and better country for all.   This year, we feel a profound sense of urgency...

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89th Legislature in Review: Your Right to Organize 

This summer, RGV AFT members in Hidalgo ISD organized and won raises for teachers, certified staff, and hourly employees, above and beyond what was guaranteed by House Bill 2 from the 89th Legislature. Empowered educators produce engaged students. History consistently shows how unions can raise the bar for all of...

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House Bill 8: Goodbye, STAAR. Hello, Who the Heck Knows? 

The second special session call was a rinse and repeat of Gov. Greg Abbott’s priorities for Texas, including entertaining a bill to “eliminate the STAAR test.” While that phrase might earn lots of hearts on social media, the reality of what transpired in the Legislature over the last week paints...

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