Tag Archives: schools

Great moments in understatement

Posted on May 21, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

State Rep. Rob Eissler, the author of the repeatedly postponed HB400, the bill that distributes the $7.8 billion in public education cuts to individual school districts, says what may be my favorite thing this session: Lawmakers who philosophically endorse reduced … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Is there still a chance gambling legislation can pass the Senate?

Posted on May 20, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

All signs still point to “no” if you ask me, but gambling legislation never goes quietly so it might look otherwise on the surface. The quiet formation of a special Texas Senate subcommittee to consider a controversial casino gambling resolution … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

HISD approves tougher teacher evaluation plan

Posted on May 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I have some concerns about this. Teachers in the Houston Independent School District next year will face tougher job evaluations that grade them on their students’ test scores under a nationally watched plan that trustees approved Thursday. The 7-2 vote … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Nothing is dead, and nothing is certain

Posted on May 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The deadline for passing House bills on second reading was midnight Friday last week, which means that tons of bills are technically dead, as they can no longer be brought to the House floor for a vote. However, bills can … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

So what happens if there isn’t a school finance deal?

Posted on May 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

You may recall that having to change the school finance formula to distribute the billions of cuts to public education is causing problems with the budget. What happens if no changes are made to the formula? The Trib contemplates the … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on So what happens if there isn’t a school finance deal?

House class size bill fails to pass

Posted on May 13, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

HB400, the House bill that would among other things allow for larger class sizes and furloughs and pay cuts for teachers, failed to pass before the midnight deadline last night. The bill from Rep. Rob Eissler, R-The Woodlands, would have … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on House class size bill fails to pass

School finance issues holding up budget deal

Posted on May 12, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

News flash: School finance reform is hard. Especially when all it’s doing is taking money away from everyone. The clock is a-tickin’ for Texas lawmakers to cobble together a budget compromise that enacts deep cuts to public education. But with … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The end of full day pre-K

Posted on May 11, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

More ways in which the Lege is abdicating its responsibility to Texas. Although many experts say these full-day classes are beneficial to children, looming cuts to education funding have put many of these full-day pre-K programs on the chopping block … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

ParentPAC speaks about public ed funding cuts

Posted on May 8, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The two-year budget passed by the Texas House is destructive, reducing public school budgets by $7.8 billion over the biennium. The budget passed by the Senate is better, but it cuts about $4 billion and leaves school funding woefully … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on ParentPAC speaks about public ed funding cuts

Another point of order delays Eissler’s school bill

Posted on May 7, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

HB400, the bill by Rep. Rob Eissler that among other things raises the 22:1 student:teacher limit in grades K-4, came up for debate last night after the “sanctuary cities” bill got sidetracked by a point of order. Here was the … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The budget work is far from done

Posted on May 6, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The Senate may have passed its budget via some creative interpretation of its rules, but there’s more to what has to happen now than just the conference committee. As Abby Rapoport notes, they still have to rewrite the formula for … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The budget work is far from done

HISD gets ready to roll out bus ads

Posted on May 3, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Last year, I noted that the HISD Board of Trustees had approved a plan to allow advertising on its school buses. They are now finally ready to get this going. HISD has partnered with Steep Creek Media to offer advertising … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

HISD contemplates different start and end times for school days

Posted on April 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

If you have kids in HISD schools, you should check this out. That dropoff and pickup schedule you’re used to may be different next fall. Nothing has been voted on yet, so take a look and give your feedback to … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Federal education funds officially on their way

Posted on April 25, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

That’s $830 million that the Senate was counting on for education funds that it will now officially have. Just two weeks after a bipartisan federal budget deal ended an eight-month impasse over $830 million in federal education funding, the U.S. … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Federal education funds officially on their way

Agricultural tax breaks

Posted on April 24, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

There’s been a fair amount of talk this session about examining different types of tax exemptions, all of which combine to cost Texas billions in revenue, but there’s one type of exemption for which I have not seen any discussion: … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

Is it time to fix school finance?

Posted on April 21, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

It’s pretty much always time to fix school finance, since school finance is always broken, so here goes the Senate. Maybe. State Senate leaders want to end the much-despised public education funding system by 2017, although they disagree on how … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

House approves a little more money, Senate readies its budget

Posted on April 20, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Just a little. Texas House budget-writers voted Monday to free up an additional $3 billion for key state services through such moves as speeding up tax collections, delaying payments and suspending the back-to-school sales tax holiday. The bills next go … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Senate Education Committee passes furlough bill

Posted on April 17, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This is still better than layoffs, but not by much. School districts would be able to reduce salaries and furlough teachers for up to six days – with layoffs used only as a last resort – under a compromise bill … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

West Texas

Posted on April 17, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Not many people want to live in West Texas any more. The 2010 Census confirmed what anyone passing through the scrublands of West Texas already knew: People are leaving, and no one is taking their place, even with oil at … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

House moves forward on school fund money

Posted on April 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Last week, I noted a bill filed by Rep. Rob Orr that would direct some money from the Available School Fund into the public schools. His legislation has now been approved by committee and is likely on its way to … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

HISD lays off teachers, discusses school closures

Posted on April 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

We knew this was coming. There may yet be more of it to come. Officials with the Houston Independent School District announced Tuesday that about 730 teachers have been notified they won’t have jobs next year — because of budget … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Doggett Amendment repealed as part of budget-shutdown deal

Posted on April 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, the things that can happen in the dark of night. In a victory for Gov. Rick Perry, the most recent Congressional budgetary stopgap — passed Friday night to avoid closing the federal government — contains language that repeals the … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Cancelling constables

Posted on April 13, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Like Grits, I see this as an opportunity, not a loss. Budget cuts have led two Harris County constables to cancel their security contracts with several area school districts, leaving the districts scrambling for a fix to cover the end … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Cancelling constables

The House finds a few extra bucks

Posted on April 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Where has this been all along? State Rep. Rob Orr, R-Burleson, introduced two bills to the House Appropriations Committee that could add several million dollars to the public schools budget over the next two years. HB 2646 proposes allowing the … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Lege loosens graduation requirements

Posted on April 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

A sign of the times. The Texas House tentatively approved legislation Wednesday to make it easier for high school students to pass end-of-course exams, a move critics called “a substantial retreat” from school accountability. “This bill creates a clear, understandable … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Lege loosens graduation requirements

HISD cuts 277 jobs

Posted on April 9, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

There will be more of this to follow. The Houston school district will have fewer bus drivers, construction workers, finance employees and other staff next year under budget cuts the board approved on Thursday. Trustees, expecting a severe shortfall in … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD cuts 277 jobs

I’ll take that bet

Posted on April 8, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Jason Embry sums it up. Nearly every Republican in the Texas House placed a bet Sunday night that the residents of their district will support taking billions of dollars out of the public school system. In voting for the House’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

School finance reform bills on tap

Posted on April 8, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Whether you look at the House budget or the slightly less drastic Senate version, public schools will not get the funding they are due under the current defined formulas. That means that how the funds are distributed needs to be … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on School finance reform bills on tap

SAISD’s Trustee elections

Posted on April 7, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know much about San Antonio ISD or the makeup of its board, but I know they’re about to have some very interesting elections next month. Name the ills of a typical inner-city school district and San Antonio has … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on SAISD’s Trustee elections

HIDS community conversations about possible school closures

Posted on April 5, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the HISD news page: HISD has scheduled a series of community conversations to discuss the possibility of closing four small elementary schools. The district administration is faced with making some difficult budget decisions to cover an expected $171 million … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

How does school finance work, anyway?

Posted on April 4, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The Trib has a useful guide to this incredibly complex topic. Here’s our layman’s guide to figuring out the current system, compiled with the help of experts at the Texas Taxpayers and Research Association, the Equity Center and the Texas … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

It’s not just about cutting public education funding

Posted on April 4, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Abby Rapoport explains one of the potential long term consequences of the violence that’s being done to public education funding this session. For over 60 years, Texas has treated education differently than the rest of the budget. In funding most … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on It’s not just about cutting public education funding

A little budgeters remorse?

Posted on April 1, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Just a little. Not much. As a vote looms on a bare-bones budget that would slash education and threaten nursing homes with closure, House GOP leaders softened their rhetoric on Tuesday to emphasize that it is a starting point and … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Bill Hammond gets his name in the papers again

Posted on March 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Whether he actually achieves any of the goals that are the basis for many of these stories remains to be seen. Hammond, a former business owner and Republican lawmaker from Dallas, is accustomed to steering the state business organization between … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Bill Hammond gets his name in the papers again