Every week, Texas AFT compiles important news, updates, and information on public education policy in Texas. The Hotline covers a wide range of topics, including statewide education news, updates from the legislative session, and our current union campaigns.
Friday, May 10, 2024 Now is as good a time as any to remind you that you can find this meme and more by following Texas AFT on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, or X/Twitter. 'Teacher Appreciation’ In theory, this week is Teacher Appreciation Week. But you wouldn’t have guessed it from recent education headlines in Texas. If you want to know...
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This week's Hotline is brought to you by Horace Mann. Friday, June 23, 2023 One Judson AFT member pictured at Thursday’s school board meeting. Together We Thrive It simply isn’t enough for Texas public schools to survive (which many of them are struggling to do at all, especially in rural...
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This week's Hotline is brought to you by Horace Mann. Friday, June 16, 2023 New Committees, New Laws, New Special Sessions… No New Raises Two weeks after Sine Die, Texas elected officials are still crossing t’s and dotting i’s on one of the most disappointing sessions for public education in...
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This week's Hotline is brought to you by Horace Mann. Friday, June 9, 2023 Rio Grande Valley community members, including McAllen AFT, protest outside an April stop on Gov. Abbott’s voucher roadshow. Photo by Clarissa Riojas. ‘If you don’t have a school, you don’t have a community’ Today, we start...
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Friday, June 2, 2023 You made a difference this session We are sorting through the results of this legislative session, and we’ll be recapping each key part of our Respect Agenda and how it fared in the Hotline throughout the summer. But to start things off, we wanted to take...
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Friday, May 26, 2023 Is this a joke? There are three days left in the regular session of the 88th Texas Legislature. And as of this writing, there are $0 dedicated in the proposed final state budget for public school employee raises. After more than a month of negotiations in...
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Friday, May 5, 2023 How to ‘Appreciate’ Educators Sen. Roland Gutierrez and Sen. Morgan LaMantia meet with Texas AFT members and leaders at the Capitol on Monday. Photo by Sierra Wiggers. While many of their colleagues were struggling through STAAR testing with anxious students, 30 Texas teachers and school employees...
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Friday, April 28, 2023 Crumbs Aren’t Good Enough Photo by Marianna Krueger, CCR Studios The state of Texas has a budget surplus that is itself larger than the entire budget of 24 states, and yet both active school employees and retired educators have been forced this session to come, hat...
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Friday, April 21, 2023 Picking winners and losers San Antonio Alliance member Teresa Razo and Northeast Houston AFT member Tammy Reyes meet with a representative from Rep. Greg Bonnen’s office this past Tuesday. This week, the Texas House Public Education Committee took up the very important work of debating whether...
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Friday, April 14, 2023 Who exactly is this session for? McAllen AFT members and LUPE volunteers protest outside Gov. Greg Abbott’s voucher stop at Covenant Christian Academy in McAllen. Photo by Clarissa Riojas. Last week, the Texas House passed a budget without any provision for meaningful raises for school employees....
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Friday, April 7, 2023 We won’t settle for crumbs. Photo by Marianna Krueger, CCR Studios. We’ve turned this week’s Hotline over to Texas AFT President Zeph Capo for an update on some important moments at the Legislature and where we go from here. Yesterday was a good day for public...
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Friday, March 31, 2023 The Legislature Sends Its Thoughts & Prayers. A memorial for the children and teachers killed by a shooter at Robb Elementary It happened again Monday. At this point, you likely don’t need an explanation of “it.” On Monday, a shooter armed with two assault-style rifles...
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Friday, March 24, 2023 Expectations vs. Reality This week in Texas education news has been a real study in the difference between expectations and cold hard reality — and not just at the Capitol. In Houston, the Texas Education Agency hosted its first community meetings after its announced takeover...
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