As House lawmakers prepare for their first major education policy debate, they have pre-filed 165 amendments. Supporters of reform say the current system is too restrictive, but opponents worry proposed changes could reverse advancements.
Morgan Smith
Morgan Smith was a reporter at the Tribune from 2009 to 2018, covering politics, public education and inequality.
In 2013, she received a National Education Writers Association award for “Death of a District,” a series on school closures. After earning a bachelor’s degree in English from Wellesley College, she moved to Austin in 2008 to enter law school at the University of Texas.
A San Antonio native, her work has also appeared in Slate, where she spent a year as an editorial intern in Washington D.C.
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Public Education
A Test for Education — and for Texas Businesses
When the House takes up its first major education policy bill on the floor Tuesday, it could provide an indication of where the battle lines are drawn on an increasingly contentious division within the business community.
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Public Education
Gains on State Exams Don’t Translate to Improved National Tests
When the state closes a decade’s worth of testing under the TAKS exams in April, it will mark the end of a period that saw students’ scores on the standardized tests soar. But that success hasn’t translated to improvement on national measures.
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Public Education
SXSWedu Video: Keeping Schools Safe
At SXSWedu, reporter Morgan Smith discusses ways to keep schools safe with Rep. Jason Villalba, R-Dallas; Texas Association of School Boards attorney Joy Baskin; Texas School Safety Center Director Victoria Calder and Barbara Beto, the Texas PTA’s legislative action chairwoman.
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Public Education
Charter School Expansion Effort Faces Big Hurdles
Sen. Dan Patrick’s Senate Bill 2 is the most ambitious attempt to expand the state’s charter school system since it was established in 1995. It will have to pass a Legislature that defeated more modest proposals two years ago.
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Public Education
Patrick Presents Details of Tax Credit Scholarship Plan
State Sen. Dan Patrick has filed legislation to create an Equal Opportunity Scholarship Program, which would allow economically disadvantaged and at-risk students who attend public schools to transfer to private schools.
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Public Education
New School Choice Bill Would Allow Local Accountability Plans
House Bill 300 from state Rep. Jason Isaac, R-Dripping Springs, would allow local school boards to opt out of most state regulations to set their own accountability goals.
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Public Education
Senator Files Tax Credit Scholarship Bill
State Sen. Ken Paxton has filed a bill that would enact a business tax credit scholarship program touted by state Sen. Dan Patrick and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst at a December media conference.
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Public Education
Senate Panel Backs More Money for Public Schools
A panel of senators voted Thursday to put $1.5 billion in additional public school funding in the state’s two-year budget. That includes more money for pre-kindergarten programs, the state’s Virtual School Network and Teach for America.
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Public Education
Jeb Bush Talks Education Reform With Texas Lawmakers
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush told Texas senators on Wednesday “to go big or go home” when it comes to pushing changes to public education policy.
