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Texas AFT at the Capitol: Recap of Week 1 of the 89th Legislature
On Tuesday, Jan. 14, the 89th Texas Legislature gaveled in, and Texas AFT was proud to represent K-12 and higher education employees the Texas State Capitol in Austin. Local union presidents from across the state came together, along with Texas AFT President Zeph Capo, to receive training and strategize on our legislative agenda.
Read MoreTEA Deputy Says the Quiet Part Out Loud: Private School Vouchers Defund Public Schools
In leaked audio obtained by The Texas Tribune this past week, a deputy commissioner in Gov. Greg Abbott’s Texas Education Agency admitted that school voucher programs would defund Texas public schools. Steve Lecholop, TEA’s deputy commissioner for governance, was caught on audio advocating for “school choice” to a parent who...
Read MoreBad bills of the week: Dan Patrick’s Politicized Public Education Priorities
This Monday Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick released his list of priority bills for the legislative session. While the announcement did not include the actual language for the bills, it did include a few words describing what each bill would do. The five bills pertaining to public education and the five...
Read MoreHouse Appropriations Committee Convenes, Receives Subcommittee Assignments
This Tuesday, the House Appropriations Committee, which is responsible for crafting the state’s biennial budget, convened for the first time this legislative session. At the hearing, the committee received testimony from Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar and Education Commissioner Mike Morath. At the hearing, Hegar discussed the state’s unprecedented $33 billion...
Read MoreFeb. 10, 2023: 89% of School Counselors Don’t Feel Respected by Texas
This week's Hotline is sponsored by Texas AFT corporate supporter Horace Mann. Friday, Feb. 10, 2023 Shining a Spotlight on School Counselors To honor National School Counseling Week, we’ve given the top spot in today’s Hotline to a Texas school counselor. My name is Jessica Pecina Lopez, and I am...
Read MoreStatement on Leaked Audio of TEA Voucher Conversation
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Feb. 15, 2023 CONTACT: press@texasaft.org Texas AFT President Zeph Capo commented today on a leaked audio recording of the Texas Education Agency deputy commissioner advocating for school vouchers. “’Maybe that's one less fourth grade teacher.’ Is that how the conversation normally goes inside TEA? Inside...
Read MoreShining a Spotlight on School Counselors
This week is National School Counseling Week, a time to highlight the incredibly important, difficult, and too often unnoticed work of our public school counselors. There is a lot we can say here, like: 89% of our members who are school counselors tell us they don’t feel respected by the...
Read MoreSenate Finance Committee Discuss Educator Raises, COLA, Community College Funding
The Senate Finance Committee, which is responsible for drafting the Senate’s version of the state budget, convened for a series of hearings this week discussing article III of SB 1, the public and higher education section of the state budget. Over three days, Committee Chair Joan Huffman (R-Houston), Vice Chair...
Read MoreSpeaker Dade Phelan Announces House Committee Assignments
This past week, Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan announced committee assignments for the 88th legislative session. In his second session as speaker of the Texas House, Phelan dramatically changed the leadership and membership of several key Texas House committees. Rep. Brad Buckley (R-Killeen) will now head the House Public Education...
Read More88th Texas Legislature: Good Bills of the Week
HB 1974 and SB 764 by Rep. Caroline Harris (R-Round Rock) and Sen. Bryan Hughes (R-Mineola), respectively, would establish a statewide Imagination Library program in partnership with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library or a similar book distribution program to encourage children to develop a love of reading via monthly mailed books...
Read MoreFeb. 3, 2023: The Fight Against Defunding Public Schools
This week's Hotline is sponsored by Texas AFT corporate supporter Horace Mann. Friday, Feb. 3, 2023 Gov. Abbott Ups the Ante on ‘School Choice’ Debate Despite National Voucher Horror Stories State funding for public education is under siege on several fronts. The specter of school privatization threatens the foundations of...
Read MoreGov. Abbott Ups the Ante on ‘School Choice’ Debate Despite National Voucher Horror Stories
State funding for public education is under siege on several fronts. The specter of school privatization threatens the foundations of our public schools — along with the raises our school staff so desperately need. Illustration by Sierra Wiggers. On Tuesday night, as most Texans were preparing for a severe ice...
Read MoreState Board of Education Reverses Course on Vouchers and Charters
The new State Board of Education met this week in Austin. Ever a more conservative body, the election of four new hard-right members was immediately felt in the boardroom this week. Republicans LJ Francis (District 2), Julie Pickren (District 7), Evelyn Brooks (District 14), Aaron Kinsey (District 15), along with...
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