PUBLIC EDUCATION

School district leaders are desperately trying to fill vacant roles to stay open and some say they have no choice but to close.

Many schools are pushing through with plans for in-person classes despite a surge in COVID-19 cases as they try to reassure parents and students they are prepared to open safely this week.

School officials are putting a greater emphasis on testing, vaccinations and masking to combat the variant’s spread.

Recent high-profile incidents and lawsuits have led some districts to make their dress code policies more gender- and race-neutral.

Here are a dozen of my columns from 2021: highlights on the winter storm, redistricting, the state’s finances and on issues that could figure into this next round of elections.

Some Texas residents are asking for greater say in what titles appear on public library shelves.

Advocates are worried that a last-minute law change means that students who need information about dating violence and child abuse will be the least likely to receive it.

The fight over race and how to deal with the pandemic has split the Fort Worth community, showcasing what’s being seen across the state and country.

Some Texas Republicans are busy raising questions about what's in the books in the state's public school libraries. The real problem isn't in the books.

The change comes after Magnolia ISD was sued by six boys and a nonbinary student for alleged discrimination.

The district appears to be the first one to be investigated since Republicans started raising questions in October about content in public school libraries.

Critics of the Chapter 313 corporate tax incentive program say it lacks accountability and is burdensome to taxpayers in the state.

The Republican Party of Texas announced Monday it had launched a new Local Government Committee to work with county parties on backing candidates for nonpartisan local offices.

North East ISD, one of the largest districts in the state, appears to be the first one to respond to state Rep. Matt Krause’s investigation into the kinds of books held in school libraries.

The so-called “critical race theory” law prohibits teachers from discussing “a widely debated and currently controversial issue of public policy or social affairs.”

As state officials pressure schools on books and coronavirus measures, Stephanie Elizalde says her district will do what’s in students’ “best interests.”

Gaps in student learning because of pandemic disruptions could impact students in the long term.

Taylor was a key player in the 2019 school finance overhaul that lawmakers passed.

Krause had been among the primary challengers to Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, whose legal problems have made him a target for both parties next year.

As the political season starts, the contestants got an unexpected bit of good news: The state comptroller says the next Legislature will start with almost $25 billion in the state treasury. Expensive campaign promises just got a lot easier to make.

Last November, the board expanded curriculum standards to include birth control in addition to abstinence education.

The inquiry comes after several high-profile controversies at Carroll ISD, including an administrator's call for teachers to provide an "opposing" view of the Holocaust.

Until now, the State Board of Education has left library selections up to local schools.

In this week’s episode, James talks with Jolie and Patrick about Gov. Greg Abbott’s call for an investigation into books at public schools and the ramping up of the 2022 election season as candidate filing season begins.

El creciente número de estudiantes latinos en Texas tiene necesidades específicas que requieren ser atendidas, como un mayor y mejor acceso a la tecnología e información en español.

State Rep. Matt Krause is investigating whether Texas school districts have purchased any of nearly 850 books in a list he produced last month.

A coming-of-age memoir by a California writer has been seized upon by politicians who want greater control over the kinds of books available in Texas schools.

It’s unclear why the governor tasked the state's education agency, which does not employ law enforcement officers, to perform the investigation.

They didn't make a majority of Texas voters happy on a single issue, but the Republican majority in the Legislature made most of their own voters happy — and then drew maps that minimize political threats to them in the November general election.

The ACLU of Texas sued Magnolia ISD, accusing it of violating students’ equal protection under the 14th Amendment and Title IX.

Abbott’s letter comes on the heels of an inquiry launched by state Rep. Matt Krause, a Fort Worth Republican running for Texas attorney general. Krause sent a letter to certain school districts with an 850-book list that included novels about racism and sexuality.

State Rep. Matt Krause, a Republican candidate for attorney general, wants public schools to explain some of the books in their libraries. He's got questions about content, along with a way to get some attention from voters.

In a lawsuit filed against Magnolia ISD, the ACLU of Texas says six boys and a nonbinary student were disciplined for having long hair under the district’s gender-based dress code.

State Rep. Matt Krause, a candidate for state attorney general, asked school superintendents to confirm whether any books on a list of 850 titles are in their libraries and classrooms.

House Bill 25 will require student athletes who compete in interscholastic competition to play on sports teams that correspond with the sex listed on their birth certificate at or near their time of birth.

While some universities in other states that hold federal contracts have mandated vaccines for all employees, many Texas universities, which collectively have billions in federal contracts, are still reviewing the executive order before it goes into effect Dec. 8.

Preliminary data shows Texas college enrollment is down about 4% statewide since 2019, mostly due to an 11% drop in community college enrollment.

High Texas property taxes were an issue in the state's 2018 elections, and you can see from their work on a new homestead exemption earlier this week that state lawmakers didn't forget that lesson from voters.

Texas lawmakers have redrawn political maps for the state’s congressional, House, Senate and Board of Education districts. Search your address to see how the new districts will affect your community.

The lawsuit says Magnolia ISD’s gender-based rule “imposed immense and irreparable harm” on students.

Seliger has served in the Senate since 2005 and led the higher education committee. He was seen as a champion of public education and local control but was derided as too soft on social conservative issues near the end of his tenure.

Gov. Greg Abbott’s office says there’s no plan for a fourth special session at this time. If this was the final special session of the year, what did we learn from it?

Lawmakers say schools are misinterpreting a new measure designed to keep critical race theory out of public schools.

If the bill becomes law, Texas will join at least five other states that have passed such legislation.

The halt comes after Gov. Greg Abbott expanded his ban on COVID-19 vaccine mandates — which previously applied to cities, counties and school districts — to private employers.

Collier says his 2018 close call against Patrick was no fluke. Next year, he’s out to prove that his campaign can make a real challenge to the two-term incumbent.

A judge has yet to decide in the state's lawsuit against the district for defying the governor's executive order.

Since 2008, the number of Texas students learning English as a second language who take longer than five years to become proficient is growing.

A House committee approved the bill despite emotional testimony from parents of transgender Texas children. This is the fourth legislative session this year in which lawmakers targeted LGBTQ kids.

Plaintiffs say the governor’s order denies children with disabilities, who are at a high risk of illness and death from the coronavirus, access to public education.