On Tuesday, while Gov. Greg Abbott (bafflingly) hosted Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey to promote his private school voucher scheme, fifth-grade math teacher Tay Carriker-Cavin, an Education Austin member, delivered a tough lesson in “Voucher Math” just feet away from their press conference. 

Armed with a chalkboard and the truth about Arizona’s voucher disaster, Carriker-Cavin broke down the devastating math of Arizona’s program, which has created a $1.4 billion budget shortfall and forced deep cuts to essential services while primarily benefiting rich families with children already in private school. See a list of verified purchases with Arizona & Florida voucher money. 

In a statement, Texas AFT President Zeph Capo noted the head-scratching nature of Abbott’s outreach to Ducey to help him assuage concerns from Texans and their lawmakers about this unaccountable cash grab:  

“It’s certainly a choice to lock arms with the man who signed into law the signature piece of legislation that has bankrupted his state. If Ducey is proud that his state has diverted money from water infrastructure to fund the purchase of $10,000 sewing machines or ski passes for families using vouchers, that’s his business. But I feel confident in saying that’s not what Texans want, not when our public schools are closing campuses, laying off staff, and cutting bus routes to cover their own state-manufactured budget deficits.”   

Despite two-thirds of Texans opposing his private school voucher program (29% support, 65% oppose), Gov. Greg Abbott held a press conference this week alongside Lt. Gov.Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dustin Burrows, declaring he had the votes to pass House Bill 3, his latest voucher scheme. 

Abbott also announced that the House Public Education Committee will vote on HB 3 next week (we’ll see). In a bizarre move, he invited former Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey to speak about Arizona’s disastrous voucher program, which created a $1.4 billion budget shortfall and forced deep cuts to essential services — all while primarily benefiting wealthy families with children already in private school. 

📖 Texas officials’ claim that school funding is at an all-time high ignores inflation and temporary federal money. A Tribune analysis also found the state’s share of the funds that schools receive per student significantly decreased in the last decade until recently. (Texas Tribune, March 28)  

📖 Texas Senate passes bill to fund safer railroad crossings after Houston ISD student’s death. Senate Bill 1555, co-authored by a Houston Democrat and East Texas Republican, would create a $350 million grant program to fund grade separation projects at the intersections of railroads and roadways. (Houston Public Media, March 26)  

📖 How did Texas school districts vote on school chaplain programs? Here’s the data. A 2023 law – Senate Bill 763 – required all Texas school districts to vote on whether to employ chaplains or create a volunteer chaplain program to provide student support services, much like a school counselor. (Austin American-Statesman, March 27)