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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The State Board of Education (SBOE) will hold its regular meeting in Austin next week. We will be closely watching several items, with special focus on those related to proposed science textbooks and charter schools. The meeting will begin Aug. 29 with a public hearing on Proclamation 2024, which includes...
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While the private school voucher threat has temporarily been abated, another bill that would allow for the rapid expansion of charter schools, which also divert public dollars to private institutions, was resurrected. HB 1707, the priority bill of the charter industry, would exempt charter schools from local zoning ordinances, effectively...
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Apart from all of the attention directed at private school vouchers at the Legislature this week, several other bills that would significantly affect Texas public school educators and higher education employees are still making their way through the legislative process. Public Education: In Committee This week, the House Public Education...
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This Tuesday, May 2, was national Teacher Appreciation Day. This week, the Texas Legislature continued to offer educators little in terms of meaningful respect, but much in terms of meaningless platitudes and token displays. Teacher Appreciation Day: House Committees Receive Testimony, Texas AFT Members Demand Respect The House Public Education...
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This week, committees of the Texas Legislature considered bills that had dramatic implications for public education, higher education, and retired educators. Public Education: House Committees Consider Charter School Expansion & LGBTQIA+ Pride Bans, Senate Committee Debates Instructional Materials & Book Bans This past week the Texas House considered two bills...
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This is the final of three deep dives we will take into the final report from the Texas Education Agency’s Teacher Vacancy Task Force. The recommendations from the report fell into three broad categories: CompensationWorking Conditions Training & Support We took a brief pause after covering topics related to compensation...
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This week, committees of the Texas Legislature considered bills that had dramatic implications for public education, higher education, and retired educators. Public Education: Senate Considers Vouchers & Teacher Working Conditions, House Considers Book Bans, Curriculum Regulation, and School Funding https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJxPaiper5Q Texas AFT President Zeph Capo provides testimony opposing vouchers to...
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Friday, March 17, 2023 Respect Public Schools. Reject School Vouchers. Socorro AFT members wave signs in support of public education and against school vouchers at a rally outside the Texas AFL-CIO on Monday. Photo by Mariana Krueger, CCR Studios. “When I say ‘respect,’ you say ‘us,’” said Zeph Capo, president...
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Texas AFT regularly participates in coalition work with allies related to our legislative priorities; in the past week, we have had the chance to join our coalition partners at the Capitol for successful advocacy days.
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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...
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Friday, April 26, 2024 A post on X (formerly Twitter) from Lily Kepner, the higher education reporter for the Austin American-Statesman, shows UT AAUP President Polly Strong addressing students, faculty, and community members at a Thursday protest, one day after local and state law enforcement agents violently responded to a...
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