Tag Archives: schools

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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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Schools begin to feel the effect of budget cuts

Posted on March 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

If you’re an HISD principal, the next few weeks will be no fun at all. More public school employees can expect pink slips in coming weeks as state law requires districts to notify teachers by mid-April – technically, 45 days … Continue reading →

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Interview with Steve Murdock

Posted on March 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Dr. Steve Murdock is a former State Demographer of Texas and director of the US Census, now the founding Director of the Hobby Center for the Study of Texas at Rice University. He’s the man to go to if you … Continue reading →

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School district reserves

Posted on March 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Rick Perry sure does like the idea of spending other people’s money. Pressed on using the Rainy Day Fund to help close of the state’s massive budget shortfall and avoid dramatic cuts, particularly to school funding, Gov. Rick Perry earlier … Continue reading →

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Smaller cuts from the Senate

Posted on March 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Trail Blazers: The Senate Finance Committee on Thursday adopted a school funding plan for the next two years that would cut basic funding for school districts by nearly 6 percent – or $2 billion a year – to handle a … Continue reading →

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What about the jobs?

Posted on March 24, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

With all of the public sector job cuts coming, will the private sector pick up the slack? This Statesman story paints a picture that I think is a tad bit too optimistic. Government employment, which includes local school districts and … Continue reading →

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Should we do away with school police forces?

Posted on March 24, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Grits makes the case. If public school budgets will be radically cut in Texas, a prospect which for the moment appears all but inevitable, which employees should be eliminated first? Judging from the ongoing debate, maybe campus cops. Jason Embry … Continue reading →

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Adding charter schools

Posted on March 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

There are currently 210 active charter schools, and state law limits the total number to 215. (Note that this refers to charter school networks as well, so those 210 schools translates to about 520 campuses.) There are about 56,000 students … Continue reading →

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What the decision to use Rainy Day funds means for school districts

Posted on March 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From School Zone: As you might know by now — unless you’re tuning out the news over spring break — the House Appropriations Committee, with Gov. Rick Perry’s blessing, agreed to spend up to $3.2 billion from the rainy-day fund … Continue reading →

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SBOE wants its new textbooks

Posted on March 20, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

But it may not get them. State board members are growing increasingly anxious that lawmakers might not provide funding for new textbooks and instructional material – even though they’re giving the Legislature $1.9 billion from a 157-year-old endowment established to … Continue reading →

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It’s a start

Posted on March 20, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Credit where it’s due, from a story about the Lobby Day effort by teachers and other public school supporters. New member Rep. Lyle Larson, R-San Antonio, reminds folks that the current budget shortfall reflects a structural deficit that began in … Continue reading →

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What would you do to help your school?

Posted on March 17, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Would you do as much as this third grade girl? To 8-year-old Elodie Giles, art class isn’t a budget extra. It’s what she looks forward to every week. She’s just not certain she can look forward to it next year. … Continue reading →

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The itty bitty budget deal

Posted on March 15, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

It’s not nothing, but not by much. Gov. Rick Perry and House leaders struck a deal Tuesday to spend $3.2 billion from the state’s rainy day fund to fix one piece of the state’s budget shortfall. […] Perry said at … Continue reading →

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Rally redux

Posted on March 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Many of the folks who rallied in Austin on Saturday stayed around for an encore today. “At a time when our educators and our educational system is under attack more than ever before, we are here to let our lawmakers … Continue reading →

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Thousands attend the Save Texas Schools rally

Posted on March 13, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Our voices have been heard. Whether we are listened to remains to be seen. Parents, educators, and students from across the state marched to the Capitol Saturday for the Save Texas Schools rally to express their concern over what could … Continue reading →

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Huffman says nothing about public education

Posted on March 13, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Republican State Sen. Joan Huffman writes an op-ed in the West U Examiner about public education that manages to say absolutely nothing of substance. As the mother of a public school student, I am a firm supporter of Texas public … Continue reading →

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Rally Day

Posted on March 12, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Thanks in part to our only Governor, those attending today’s rally are even more fired up about it. As thousands of teachers, school staffers and parents prepare for a state Capitol rally Saturday against education cuts, they’ve found new recruits … Continue reading →

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Perry lies about teachers being fired

Posted on March 11, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

There’s really no other way to characterize this. At a press conference this morning to discuss states’ rights, Gov. Rick Perry was asked about the thousands of Texas teachers expected at the Capitol this weekend to protest legislative proposals to … Continue reading →

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Hochberg’s “Let’s get real” bill

Posted on March 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Rep. Scott Hochberg has filed a school finance bill that he himself wouldn’t vote for. It’s to make sure everyone realizes what the proposed cuts to public education really mean. Under HB 2485, all school districts would be treated as … Continue reading →

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1200 teachers at risk in HISD

Posted on March 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

That’s a lot of jobs. The Houston school board is scheduled to vote Thursday on Superintendent Terry Grier’s plan to reduce the amount of money the district doles out to each school, paving the way for layoffs in light of … Continue reading →

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Getting ready for the Save Texas Schools rally

Posted on March 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This needs to be big. Teachers, parents and school district employees will head by the thousands to the state Capitol over Spring Break for two rallies, hoping to show lawmakers what’s at stake with budget cuts to education. They’re ready … Continue reading →

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Push for HB275

Posted on March 9, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

HB275 is the bill by Rep. Jim Pitts to spend money from the Rainy Day Fund to close the budget shortfall from the 2010-11 biennium. Here’s an update about it from a group called Spring Branch Speaks, sent to me … Continue reading →

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Teachers and the economy

Posted on March 9, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Some familiar themes in this story. Gov. Rick Perry can’t quit talking about jobs. He used the word 19 times in his recent state of the state address and has made it a top spending priority. But if Perry realizes … Continue reading →

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HISD’s budget and magnet meeting

Posted on March 6, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

A whole lot happened on Thursday evening with HISD. Houston ISD Superintendent Terry Grier proposed a major shake-up Thursday night to the district’s popular magnet program, calling for 25 schools to lose the special status and for funding increases or … Continue reading →

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Census stories: Dallas and its neighbors

Posted on March 5, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The city of Dallas isn’t growing. Despite a surging state population and double-digit growth rates in Austin, Fort Worth and San Antonio, the city of Dallas grew by a paltry 1 percent in the last decade, according to the new … Continue reading →

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Harmony Academy

Posted on March 5, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting story about another large charter school network in Texas. With little fanfare, the Harmony Academy system has become the powerhouse of the Texas charter school scene — easily surpassing KIPP and Yes Prep as the largest charter network in … Continue reading →

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Ogden on board with Pitts about Rainy Day Fund

Posted on March 2, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

State Sen. Steve Ogden, the chair of the Senate Finance Committee, joins with his House counterpart Rep. Jim Pitts in endorsing the use of the Rainy Day Fund to at least close the deficit from the 2010-11 biennium. Senate Finance … Continue reading →

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Ellis and Hobby on class size limits

Posted on March 2, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

State Sen. Rodney Ellis and former Lt. Gov. Bill Hobby hit all the high points in writing about the 22:1 class size limit and the effects we’d see if it were lifted. The simple truth is that the 22-1 ratio … Continue reading →

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Deadline to RSVP for March 14 Lobby Day event

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Just a reminder about this. Monday, March 14th, 7 am – 7 pm: Legislative Day at the Texas Capitol in Austin, organized by Houston Federation of Teachers. HFT has invited parents to join them in meeting with as many state … Continue reading →

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Hochberg’s plan for less testing

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

A new bill filed by State Rep. Scott Hochberg that would exempt students who easily passed standardized tests one year from taking them the next, makes all kinds of sense. The bill, co-authored by Hochberg and freshman Rep. Dan Huberty, … Continue reading →

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