by Reeve Hamilton, The Texas Tribune
On the Ballot: Taxes, Property, and College
Texas educators vent at feds over teacher test mess
Annoyed at a recent federal ruling that could nullify the credentials of thousands of public school teachers, Texas education advocates want Washington to waive a technicality they say would cause teachers and districts needless headaches.
Education Commissioner Asks Feds to Reconsider Stripping Texas Teacher Credentials
“The real issue here is, you don’t do something like this after school starts,” Scott said in an interview this afternoon. “And you don’t just decide it in a letter or an email… They leave themselves open to criticism and litigation when they do something outside the rule-making process.”
On the Ballot: Taxes, Property, and College
Texans — at least those who do this kind of thing — will vote on 11 proposed amendments to the Texas Constitution on November 3.
Teacher Credentials May Be Nullified By Feds
Thousands of “highly qualified” Texas public school teachers don’t actually meet the federal definition for that standard — which could jeopardize their jobs and will certainly cause bureaucratic headaches for them and their school systems.
Pickett won’t charge
Rep. Joe Pickett, D-El Paso, said today he decided not to run for the Texas Senate seat being vacated by state Sen. Eliot Shapleigh.
Best-Laid Plans
It’s hard to believe the governor saw this coming. When Rick Perry decided to replace the a board on the eve of a hearing about the evidence that sent a Texas man to the executioner, he couldn’t have been thinking the story would grow legs and stomp all around his bid for reelection.
Shapleigh’s out and then what?
El Paso state Sen. Eliot Shapleigh’s surprise announcement that he won’t seek another term in the Texas Senate in 2010 set off speculation about his plans for higher office — and a vigorous fight to replace him.
Keeping Count
Texas should create a committee to promote participation in the 2010 U.S. Census, state Rep. Mike Villarreal told Gov. Rick Perry in a letter Tuesday.
Is there a doctor on the line?
Emergency medical technicians and entry-level nurses could be cut out of the telemedicine equation under a proposal the Texas Medical Board is considering. The change would prohibit anyone but doctors, physicians’ assistants and advanced practice nurses from presenting patients for care via long-distance videoconferencing – a move rural hospitals and prison doctors adamantly oppose.


