Featured News
Action Needed: SBOE to Review TEA’s Bible-Infused New Curriculum
Typically, we would wait to preview the State Board of Education (SBOE) meeting in the Hotline edition closest to the date of the meeting. However, there is a hotly anticipated hearing happening at the board’s next regular meeting, Sept. 10-13, and we need our members engaged and taking action in advance of the meeting. Regular Hotline readers will be familiar...
Read MoreLocal Businesses Sue Texas over “Book Ban Bill”
Last week, a coalition of Texas-based book sellers and several bookstore associations filed a lawsuit against Texas over HB 900, the book ban bill passed during the legislative session. Under HB 900 by Jared Patterson (R-Frisco), private book vendors, not school librarians or elected officials, would assign ratings to these...
Read MoreAcademic Freedom Under Fire At Texas A&M
The Texas A&M University System has been accused of making politically motivated attacks on the employment of two highly respected university professors. These two separate cases of apparent political interference in the administration of one of Texas’ top public university systems comes in the wake of broad attacks against academic...
Read MoreAFT Releases New Report Connecting Social Media to Mental Health Crisis
Last month, the American Federation of Teachers, along with the American Psychological Association, Fairplay, ParentsTogether and Design It For Us, released a new, groundbreaking report pointing to social media companies as a “root cause” of the nationwide mental health crisis. The report, entitled “Likes vs. Learning: The Real Cost of...
Read MoreAFT Represents At Texas AFL-CIO Convention
More than a dozen Texas AFT members and leaders attended the 2023 Texas AFL-CIO convention in support of a ‘Bigger, Broader, Bolder Labor Movement’. Educators are central to the labor movement in Texas and understand, as Texas AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Leonard Aguilar said, “Workers get that bettering our livelihoods requires new...
Read MoreA-F Accountability Ratings to be Released in September
The Texas Education Agency (TEA) has announced a timeline for release of the 2022-2023 state accountability ratings. For some school districts, the new A-F ratings, which will be released to the public on September 28, 2023, will show that they are doing a worse job compared to last school year...
Read MoreStatement on Houston ISD Plans to Fill Staffing Gaps with Uncertified Teachers
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Aug. 2, 2023 CONTACT: press@texasaft.org Texas AFT President Zeph Capo & Houston Federation of Teachers President Jackie Anderson commented today on reports that Houston ISD’s state-installed superintendent will seek waivers from the Texas Education Agency to hire uncertified teachers: “Educators have been told throughout the process of...
Read MoreJuly 28, 2023: AFT in Washington, in Austin, in Your District
Friday, July 28, 2023 Education Austin, Houston Federation of Teachers Presidents Represent Texas at Nation’s Capitol Last week, two Texas AFT local union presidents traveled to Washington D.C. to represent Texas educators on the national stage. Jackie Anderson, president of the Houston Federation of Teachers, journeyed to D.C. to participate...
Read MoreFact vs. Fiction: The ‘Demand’ for School Vouchers
David DeMatthews, associate professor in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy at the University of Texas, and David S. Knight, associate professor of education finance and policy at the University of Washington, broke down school voucher rhetoric in the Houston Chronicle this week. The Legislature may be adjourned (for...
Read MoreTEA Recruiting Advisory Committee Members, Application Deadline Aug. 25
Just because the Legislature is not in session (for now), that doesn't mean the policy work stops. The Texas Education Agency is always in the process of revising its rules and regulations for our Texas classrooms. Frequently, TEA seeks educator involvement. It’s critical that our members participate in these ongoing...
Read MoreUpdate from Houston ISD: Fighting for the ‘Heart & Soul of Learning’
Jackie Anderson, president of the Houston Federation of Teachers, speaks at a March rally with Houston ISD parents, community allies, and local elected officials. Nearly two months have passed since the Texas Education Agency’s occupation of Houston ISD began. With just weeks before the start of school in Houston, much...
Read MoreUnpacking the Legislature: Your Working Conditions
Northeast Houston AFT President Shonda Below with a student at Texas AFT’s Public Education Advocacy Day in March 2023. Photo by Mariana Krueger, CCR Studios. When the Texas Education Agency released the results of their now infamously ignored Teacher Vacancy Taskforce Report, their recommendations fell into three broad categories: Compensation...
Read MoreJuly 21, 2023: The Will to Thrive
Friday, July 21, 2023 The Will to Thrive So far, no statistics have motivated our state leaders to fix the chronic underfunding of our public education system. Not the fact that Texas is 39th in the nation for per-pupil funding of its public schools. Nor the fact that we are...
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