Tag Archives: schools

House starts thinking about school finance

Posted on November 1, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Good to see. For the past several weeks, state lawmakers have been meeting to discuss how to better fund public education in the wake of a court ruling calling Texas’ school finance system inequitable, inefficient and illegal. Education Committee Chairman … Continue reading →

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HISD Board approves one cent tax rate increase

Posted on October 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Still a low tax rate, just slightly higher now. As architects prepare designs for dozens of new campuses, the Houston school board on Thursday approved a 1-cent tax rate increase to help pay down debt from the largest school district … Continue reading →

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Gov debate II: That’s more like it

Posted on October 3, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The second Governor’s debate was a lively affair. Republican Attorney General Greg Abbott, who has mostly avoided direct confrontation with his opponent in the race for Texas governor, took a hard swing at Democratic Sen. Wendy Davis over her ethics … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Chron for Collier

Posted on October 2, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Add the Houston Chronicle to the list of papers endorsing Mike Collier for Comptroller. [Sen. Glenn] Hegar knows politics; Collier knows the numbers. In our view the choice is clear: Texas needs the numbers man, not a politician who wants … Continue reading →

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Abbott appeals school finance case to Supreme Court

Posted on September 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

No surprise. Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott on Friday appealed to the Texas Supreme Court a district court finding that the state’s school finance system is unconstitutional. State District Judge John Dietz’s Aug. 30 ruling called Texas’ current school finance … Continue reading →

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Dan Patrick loves the poor folks

Posted on September 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

He says so himself, so it must be true. State Sen. Dan Patrick told a wealthy Houston business group Thursday that he would advocate for the poor and people of color if elected lieutenant governor in November, at one point … Continue reading →

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On school districts selling stadium naming rights

Posted on September 27, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Raise your hand if this surprises you. When Bert Brocker wanted to advertise his auto business on the entrances of New Caney ISD’s new football stadium recently, the district offered another, bigger possibility: Naming rights to the entire $20 million, … Continue reading →

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HISD’s volunteer reading army

Posted on September 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

HISD’s number one priority is, or at least needs to be, improving reading performance. I really hope this will help. Leaders of the Houston Independent School District turned to the community on Thursday, launching the district’s largest volunteer recruitment effort … Continue reading →

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Time again to talk textbooks

Posted on September 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Kathy Miller of the Texas Freedom Network sounded the alarm in the Sunday op-eds. The last time Texas adopted social studies textbooks – in 2002 – political activists and members of the state education board themselves demanded scores of changes … Continue reading →

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What next for school finance?

Posted on September 3, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

That depends on the Attorney General and the Supreme Court, but one way or the other it’s up to the Legislature. State lawmakers from both parties agreed the responsibility for funding public schools falls on them. But history suggests the … Continue reading →

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School finance system ruled unconstitutional again

Posted on August 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

A little light reading for your holiday weekend. Nearly three years after more than 600 Texas school districts filed litigation challenging the state’s school finance system, a Travis County district judge has ruled in their favor. In an almost 400-page … Continue reading →

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More education policy from Davis

Posted on August 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

A lot to like here. Saying she wants to expand Texas high schoolers’ access to technical job training programs, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis announced a plan to create a Career-Technical Coordinating Board. The plan is the latest in a … Continue reading →

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Teachers are doing it for themselves

Posted on August 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I know this is intended to be an upbeat story, but I can’t help but find it a little depressing. Some tech-savvy teachers turned to the Web this summer to try to offset the nearly $500 typically spent to ready … Continue reading →

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Collier keeps up the attack

Posted on August 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I really like the way he’s running his campaign. Democratic comptroller nominee Mike Collier says his Republican opponent Glenn Hegar bragged to a Houston-area tea party interviewer last year that he was proud of the Legislature’s 2011 budget cuts to … Continue reading →

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Motion to recuse Judge Dietz denied

Posted on June 25, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Good. State District Judge John Dietz will not be forced off Texas’ ongoing school finance case, a San Antonio judge ruled Monday, handing a victory to school districts suing the state over what they call an unconstitutional lack of adequate … Continue reading →

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HISD passes its budget

Posted on June 21, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

They restored a lot of funding, but it’s the changes to magnet school funding that everyone is talking about. Bouncing back from recent cash-strapped years, the Houston school board Thursday approved a bigger budget that gives raises to all employees, … Continue reading →

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Reading and writing and operating systems

Posted on June 21, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Religion, politics, and operating systems – three things sure to start a spirited discussion. By January 2016, when the Houston Independent School District’s latest tech initiative hits full stride, the district will issue laptops to every high school student and … Continue reading →

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Bad signs of the times

Posted on June 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t even know what to say. Cypress-Fairbanks ISD will spend $55 million to tighten school security, including installing strategically placed panic buttons on campuses and replacing existing entry windows with bullet-resistant glass – upgrades experts call a necessary but … Continue reading →

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HISD prepares its budget

Posted on June 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Teacher pay raises and magnet school funding changes are the main points of interest. Thanks to rising property values, all Houston ISD employees would receive raises and schools would get more money for supplies, field trips or tutors next year … Continue reading →

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Cheerleading is now a sport in Texas

Posted on June 17, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

This is a real thing. Cheerleading will finally get its tryout from the University Interscholastic League. After a hearty debate and a failed first vote, the UIL Legislative Council approved a one-year pilot program to hold a league-sanctioned cheerleading competition … Continue reading →

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Digital textbooks are on their way

Posted on June 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

HISD is on the leading edge. HISD is the first of Texas’ large districts – and among the first large districts in the nation – to radically rethink the way it buys new high school instructional materials, shifting from printed … Continue reading →

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HISD magnet funding vote delayed till next week

Posted on June 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

You still have time to talk to your trustee about this. Superintendent Terry Grier’s administration has proposed standardizing how the programs are funded – a plan that would result in some schools losing tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars … Continue reading →

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Meet your “education reform” groups

Posted on May 22, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Observer provides a primer. For 20 years, Texans for Lawsuit Reform (TLR) has been protecting our hospitals and business leaders from meddling trial lawyers, convincing the Texas Legislature to cap damage awards and closing the courthouse doors to some … Continue reading →

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What is the deal with Vanguard funding?

Posted on May 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It started with an urgent action email sent to Travis Elementary School parents: As you may have heard, the Houston ISD Board’s proposed budget for the 2014-15 school year would eliminate HISD Vanguard Magnet funding. These drastic cuts would threaten … Continue reading →

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More on Achievement School Districts

Posted on May 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Chris Barbic, the founder of YES Prep and the superintendent of Tennessee’s Achievement School District, one of the models for Greg Abbott’s education plan, weighs in on what these things are and are not. First, by law, the Tennessee ASD … Continue reading →

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Jay Aiyer: Consider a local option for pre-k

Posted on May 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Note: From time to time, I solicit guest posts from various individuals on different topics. While I like to think I know a little something about a lot of things, I’m fortunate to be acquainted with a number of people … Continue reading →

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HISD does have a role to play in the Bush Foundation literacy effort

Posted on May 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I learned this from a Terry Grier op-ed in the Chron. That’s why last week’s release of the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation’s “Houston’s Literacy Crisis: A Blueprint for Community Action,” was such a welcome event. The foundation’s plan to … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed over teacher evaluation system

Posted on May 2, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

A new front is opened in the war on standardized testing. Seven HISD teachers and their union are suing the school district to try to end job evaluations tied to students’ test scores, arguing the method is arbitrary, unfair and … Continue reading →

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Yik Yak

Posted on April 30, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

News flash: A new app that enables the posting of anonymous unfiltered thoughts can cause headaches for school administrators. Film at 11. A recent bomb threat alerted many Memorial High School parents and administrators to something that many Houston-area students … Continue reading →

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More on the Bush Foundation literacy effort

Posted on April 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

We had the preview story, now we have the rollout story about the efforts by the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation to tackle the problem of illiteracy. The nascent campaign to improve Houstonians’ reading skills got a $300,000 kick-start Thursday … Continue reading →

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Falkenberg on Abbott’s education plan

Posted on April 27, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Lisa Falkenberg has a balanced take on Greg Abbott’s education plan. Progress has been tragically slow for the students of North Forest. And their saga makes great fodder for those beating the drum to create something called an “achievement school … Continue reading →

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Abbott’s education plan

Posted on April 26, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Some actual policy from Greg Abbott. In the 27-page, footnoted report that accompanied the press conference, he proposed to “create a swift, automatic process under which the very worst schools would be removed from the control of their local school … Continue reading →

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On improving literacy

Posted on April 25, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this story. In Houston, a city known for its brilliant doctors and energy executives, adults are waiting in line for classes that teach basic literacy skills – reading, writing and speaking clearly. They … Continue reading →

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HISD unveils new mascots

Posted on April 17, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Here they are. The cafeteria at Hamilton Middle School showcases a painting of a Native American in a feathered headdress. Students wear collared shirts with a similar symbol. They were, until Tuesday, the Hamilton Indians. Now, with a new school … Continue reading →

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