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 stateโs chronic teacher shortage, so theyโve turned to other creative solutions โ like leaning on cultural exchange programs to recruit international teachers.
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 โ even though public schools have complained for months they donโt have enough money to meet new safety mandates approved this year.
After school voucher bill falls apart, supporters and opponents get ready for future fights
The Texas Houseโs vote to block education savings accounts disappointed voucher advocates and likely spelled doom for additional public school funding. Both bands say theyโll keep pushing for their priorities during next yearโs primary elections and the 2025 legislative session.
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 donโt delay the implementation of property tax cuts, teacher pension raises and infrastructure spending.
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.
The Texas Houseโs 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.
Voucher proposal spurs mix of excitement, wariness in Texas home schooling community
Parents of Texasโ growing population of home-schooled students are split over whether education savings accounts would give them much-needed financial help or represent an unwanted government involvement in their kidsโ educations.
Texas House priority bill increases education spending in exchange for creating voucher program
House Bill 1 would make an educational savings account program available to 25,000 Texas students in its first year, with increased participation to follow. The governorโs office indicated that the proposal was lacking.
Vouchers return this special session โ and school funding might be left out. Hereโs what you need to know.
Gov. Greg Abbott called lawmakers back to Austin to try again to pass education savings accounts, which would let families use state funds to pay for their childrenโs private schooling. Teacher pay was not part of his agenda.
How a state effort to fund Texas schools equitably is shortchanging dozens of rural districts
For decades, the Texas comptrollerโs office has double-checked property valuations across the state, which help determine how much school districts can levy in property taxes. But when state and county appraisers disagree, districts can end up with big holes in their budgets.
Texas House committee report outlines possible path forward for school vouchers
The House blocked school vouchers during this yearโs regular lawmaking session, but a report released Friday shows some members might be willing to approve such a scaled-back version of the program that doesnโt compete with public schools for funds.
Brazosport ISD is training its own teachers. The program might become a model for other Texas schools.
The small districtโs apprenticeship program lets aspiring teachers earn a bachelorโs degree and teacher certification at no cost. In return, participants must work at the district for at least three years. Observers hope state lawmakers will use the program as a model for legislation.
With no new funding from the state, Texas schools are breaking the bank to pay for teacher raises
Lawmakers this year didnโt approve extra money to help schools pay for raises despite having an unprecedented $32 billion surplus โ even after Gov. Greg Abbott commissioned a task force last year to improve teacher pay and retention.
No teacher raises. A failed school voucher push. Armed guards. Hereโs what changed for public education this legislative session.
Lawmakers sacrificed school funding to block school vouchers, but the issue could be debated again in a special session. Districts will get new funds for school safety, though Uvalde families were ultimately left disappointed with inaction on gun restrictions.
Texas Senate committee revises school funding bill in last-minute bid to implement voucher program
Texas senators have latched education savings accounts to a school funding bill in a last-ditch effort to avoid a special session. But some House members are furious at the revamped version and have vowed not to let it become law.
Texas House advances $4.5 billion school funding bill
Lawmakers have already proposed directing billions of dollars to schools so they can lower property taxes and pay for safety upgrades. But House Bill 100 would be the first to increase the amount of money districts receive to raise teacher pay and cover the actual costs of educating students.
At parental rights event, Gov. Greg Abbott sheds light on how heโd implement โschool choiceโ policy
For the first time, Abbott makes it clear which policy he supports. Bills that would allow parents to get state money to send their kids to schools outside of the stateโs public education system have been floated previously, but top lawmakers believe the policies will pass this session.
COVID-19 upended Texas schoolsโ finances. Now theyโre calling for a new funding system.
Districts like Pflugerville ISD, which is struggling with a $12 million deficit and weighing school closures, say the pandemic and rising inflation have eroded the value of the stateโs last effort to overhaul its public education finance system.
Texas commission recommends tying community collegesโ state funding to their performance
State higher education leaders are pushing for the changes as community colleges face greater workforce demands and financial pressures. The commissionโs report now goes to lawmakers, who are expected to file legislation on the matter next session.
Analysis: Texas governmentโs favorite local tax
State lawmakers will tell you they hate property taxes as much as anyone. But the state itself doesnโt levy the tax โ local governments do. And lowering it in a meaningful way would require state officials to raise taxes or cut programs. For them, talking about it is easier than doing something.