Texas earned an F in public education. Are state leaders paying any attention?

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Texas has received plenty of grades over the years, from school accountability ratings to national rankings on everything from business growth to higher education, but this month the state received a different kind of report card: an F from the Network for Public Education for its commitment to public schools. Texas was one of 17 states to receive a failing grade in NPE’s 2026 report, which evaluates states on how well they protect public education from privatization, weak oversight, and the diversion of public dollars away from public schools.

The 2026 NPE report card looks at several areas, including voucher programs, charter school accountability, virtual schools, transparency requirements, and protections for public education funding. The importance of the individual metrics are open to debate, but the timing is hard to ignore as Texas lawmakers just approved the state’s first large-scale voucher program, expanding the flow of public dollars toward private educational expenses while pu

blic school districts are still dealing with budget shortfalls, staffing shortages, enrollment declines, and rising operating costs. Supporters call that “choice,” but for educators watching their campuses lose staff, valuable programs, and students, it looks a lot more like another way to drain resources from the schools that still serve the overwhelming majority of Texas children.

The voucher fight is the most obvious example, but the report points to a broader pattern. Texas has spent years demanding more from traditional public schools with A-F ratings, financial audits, state interventions, and full state takeovers. At the same time, serious questions remain about whether charter and private schools are being held to the same standard. That tension is visible right now in the State Board of Education’s review of Texas High School for Accelerated Learning’s charter application, a proposal for two dropout recovery campuses in the Aldine and Spring ISD areas that would be managed largely by a Florida-based charter management organization. The application has raised concerns about for-profit management, financial transparency, and future expansion, which are exactly the kinds of issues public education advocates have warned about for years. 

Virtual schooling is another area where NPE raises concerns, especially because many states have expanded online education options despite persistent questions about student outcomes and oversight. Texas has continued to debate virtual school expansion as part of a larger push toward alternative education models, even as brick-and-mortar public school districts are being asked to handle more with less.

Meanwhile, the public schools already serving more than 5 million Texas students are facing a financial reality that’s worsening by the year. Many districts are entering difficult budget cycles because of inflation, declining enrollment, rising healthcare and insurance costs, and the end of federal pandemic relief funds. Some analysts estimate that as many as 40% of Texas districts could face serious fiscal stress, and districts across the state are already discussing school closures, consolidation, hiring freezes, and program cuts, even after lawmakers passed HB 2. Houston ISD continues to see high teacher turnover under state-appointed leadership, Austin ISD is dealing with enrollment decline and consolidation discussions, and El Paso ISD has warned of major budget challenges. These problems are symptoms of a school finance system that keeps asking public schools to deal with more instability while the state experiments with more ways to send money elsewhere.

In the past few years, Texas has expanded state control over local districts, pursued vouchers, allowed charter growth with uneven oversight, and continued debating virtual education expansion, all while educators are telling lawmakers that the basics still aren’t being met. Teachers need manageable class sizes, students need counselors and support staff, campuses need stable budgets, and communities need elected school boards with real authority. An F is a harsh grade to receive, but it reflects the reality of what our public school employees, students, and communities are experiencing.