Tag Archives: schools

The job market for teachers

Posted on July 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

There are still some jobs available for new teachers and teachers looking for a new gig, but not nearly as many as there have been in the past. Because of the Legislature’s initial $4 billion cut from public school funding, … Continue reading →

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Are there West Texas pickup opportunities available?

Posted on July 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Depends on how you look at it, I suppose. Former Potter County Democratic Party chairman Abel Bosquez said he plans to run for the same Texas House seat he did not win in last year’s election. “I am ready to … Continue reading →

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Rethinking school discipline

Posted on July 24, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. Nearly 60 percent of junior high school and high school students get suspended or expelled, according to a report that tracked about 1 million Texas children over a six-year period. About 15 percent of the Texas seventh- through 12th-grade … Continue reading →

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That next school finance lawsuit is coming

Posted on July 19, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Look for it when school starts this fall. Texas lawmakers who left town recently after cutting public education and doing little to fix school funding disparities have guaranteed another school finance lawsuit, according to educators and lawyers involved in the … Continue reading →

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Does Perry get any credit?

Posted on July 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

What credit, if any, should Rick Perry get for Texas’ relatively good economic condition? This Statesman story aims to find out. As Gov. Rick Perry’s flirtation with running for president puts the Texas economy under a microscope, there’s no question … Continue reading →

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Why not put solar panels on school rooftops?

Posted on July 13, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

EoW asks a good question: As the debate over the Texas GOP’s cuts to public education funding raged, and the summer sun started to heat up, it became apparent that at least one opportunity was being missed. That’s when a … Continue reading →

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Opening bids on the next deficit

Posted on July 12, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Do I hear $7 billion? Ten billion? How about $15 billion? Early projections indicate that when the Legislature convenes in 2013 it could face another revenue shortfall. Not as severe as this year’s $27-billion gap, but still problematic. “I think … Continue reading →

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We need better information about our schools

Posted on July 11, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

SBOE member Thomas Ratliff makes a lot of sense about school accountability ratings and how little they really tell you about a given school’s performance. Many people across the state are familiar with the terms “exemplary,” “recognized,” “academically acceptable” or … Continue reading →

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The HISD/charter school “talent war”

Posted on July 6, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This sounds more alarming than it should be. KIPP, in competition with HISD for students, increasingly is wooing high-level staff, too. Mike Feinberg, cofounder and superintendent of KIPP Houston, calls the contest for administrators “a talent war.” Since last year, … Continue reading →

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Sine Die, take two

Posted on June 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The House followed the Senate out the door yesterday, leaving a bit of unfinished business behind. The Senate’s version of a bill to criminalize intrusive pat-downs by federal agents with the Transportation Security Administration has died in the House, after … Continue reading →

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Fiscal and health care bills pass

Posted on June 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s one less reason for a special session. One key budget-related bill, Senate Bill 2, won final approval from both chambers this afternoon and is headed to the governor’s desk. SB 2 is an appropriations bill that goes hand-in-hand with … Continue reading →

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The budget is still broken

Posted on June 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

What was true at the beginning of the regular legislative session is still true as the special session winds down: The budget is still broken. Instead of revamping the business tax structure or taking aim at tax exemptions, lawmakers cut … Continue reading →

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GOP finally kills Howard amendment

Posted on June 24, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

In the end, this was no surprise. An amendment from Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, that would have directed surplus money from the Rainy Day Fund to pay for enrollment growth in public schools has perished in conference committee. The House … Continue reading →

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No more cuts for HISD, for now

Posted on June 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, the HISD Board of Trustees had originally set its budget based on the initial House appropriations, which cut almost $8 billion from public schools. The budget that’s in the works now would “only” cut $4 billion, so … Continue reading →

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Cut education now, pay later?

Posted on June 21, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

That’s the question for Republican legislators, isn’t it? GOP legislators didn’t budge this session from their commitment to reduce Texas’ education spending even in the face of protests, negative ad campaigns and reams of criticism. The outcry didn’t faze them … Continue reading →

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A few facts about education employment

Posted on June 19, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

State Board of Education member Thomas Ratliff brings some numbers to the debate. When you hear the discussion about the increase in the number of “non-teachers” in our schools, consider the following facts. These numbers represent full-time equivalent employees to … Continue reading →

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Eissler changes class size bill

Posted on June 12, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Hair Balls was first with the news. Rep. Rob Eissler (R- The Woodlands) whose House Bill 18 wanted to move the state to a cap of 25 students in each classroom, [Friday] instead made a floor substitution which only mildly … Continue reading →

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HISD rejects uniform start time

Posted on June 12, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I must say, I’m glad to see this. The Houston school board Thursday rejected a cost-cutting plan to change campus bell schedules next year after families complained about the disruption to their daily routines and their children’s sleep habits. Objections … Continue reading →

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House passes budget

Posted on June 11, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The main objective of the special session has now been accomplished. But not before one of the House’s biggest homophobes nearly derailed it on Thursday. Lengthy debate on a key budget bill featured many retreads of contentious topics from the … Continue reading →

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Republicans admit that the Rainy Day fund has been spent

Posted on June 9, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I’m sure you’ve heard Rick Perry and other Republicans talk about how they’ve “balanced” the budget without tapping into the Rainy Day fund. I’m sure you’ll be surprised to hear that they’re lying. Republicans have given up any pretense that … Continue reading →

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Senate approves teacher furlough bill

Posted on June 9, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Another divisive bill, another party-line vote. Legislation allowing school districts to reduce teacher pay and furlough them — to help absorb big budget cuts — sailed through the Texas Senate on Monday with a straight party-line vote. Lawmakers are working … Continue reading →

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HISD contemplates a tax increase

Posted on June 8, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

They’re not saying it explicitly yet, but the inference is clear. Houston ISD board president Paula Harris said today that raising property taxes, dipping into the district’s savings account and suing the state over school finance inequities are all possibilities. … Continue reading →

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About that Rainy Day fund

Posted on June 7, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Peggy Fikac puts it in perspective. Why are state GOP leaders so firmly against spending more money from the rainy day fund for public education? As some explain with increasing clarity, it’s because budget writers have all but spent it … Continue reading →

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HISD to vote on changing school start and end time changes

Posted on June 7, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Those of you with kids in HISD schools, take note. To save an estimated $1.2 million, HISD officials are considering standardizing the times that schools start and end, prompting protests from parents worried about teenagers nodding off in class or … Continue reading →

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Saturday video break: No more teachers’ dirty looks

Posted on June 4, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Yesterday was the last day of class for the Houston Independent School District. You know what that means: I’m trying to think of a performer who’s more in his element when surrounded by Muppets than Alice Cooper, and I can’t … Continue reading →

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Senate Finance committee does its thing again

Posted on June 4, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I wouldn’t call the pace of this special session “fast”, but they do have the ball rolling, starting with the Senate Finance committee as they re-approve a budget, or at least a budget figure. The Senate Finance Committee voted 10-1 … Continue reading →

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Back to school finance

Posted on June 3, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The Lege has started the process of picking up where it left off on school finance. The Trib reminds us how we got here. [T]he earlier failure of SB 1581, which put a behind-closed-doors conference committee in charge of any … Continue reading →

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Our young population

Posted on June 3, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From last week, a story about new Census data that shows (among other things) how young Texas’ population is. The state’s median age — meaning half of residents are older, and half younger — is 33.6, substantially lower than the … Continue reading →

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Corporal punishment

Posted on June 2, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Fascinating story in the Statesman from last week about the debate over the use of corporal punishment in schools. People who are not educators can be confused about the meaning of corporal punishment. It is not a teacher shoving a … Continue reading →

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House gavels in and out

Posted on May 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

That was quick. The House gaveled in shortly after 10 a.m. today and adjourned about 10 minutes later after Speaker Joe Straus announced that he’ll have a better idea about the special session’s schedule when the body reconvenes at 10 … Continue reading →

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Get ready for the special session

Posted on May 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Ready or not, here they come back. And with the start of the special session comes a little surprise. Gov. Rick Perry and legislative leaders hope to move through a series of bills quickly during the special session that begins … Continue reading →

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Davis filibusters SB1811, special session looms for tomorrow

Posted on May 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Hoo boy. Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, filibustered for a little more than an hour Sunday night, probably killing a school finance and revenue bill critical to the budget (it’s still possible for a four-fifths supermajority of the Senate to … Continue reading →

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Vote on school finance today

Posted on May 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

On Friday night, the Lege finally reached an agreement on school finance, which is to say on how to distribute the $4 billion in cuts to public education to the school districts. Today the Lege gets to vote on that … Continue reading →

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Anti-bullying bill passed

Posted on May 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

There hasn’t been a whole lot of good news this session, but this certainly qualifies. Eight months after Cy-Fair middle school student Asher Brown’s suicide, the Texas Senate unanimously approved “anti-bullying” legislation aimed at giving school administrators authority to prevent … Continue reading →

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