UT-Austin announces round of firings in latest step to comply with Texas’ DEI ban
The firings come after state leaders criticized universities for not doing enough to enforce the ban. Students say UT-Austin has already overcorrected. Full Story
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![Students pass in front of the Jackson School of Geosciences and Gates-Dell Complex at the University of Texas at Austin on Feb. 22, 2024.]()
Credit: Maria Crane/The Texas Tribune -
House, Senate bills at odds over power to boost future funding for Texas school voucher program
The Senate’s Republican bill would let state leaders grow the program by taking money from other agencies without the Legislature’s approval. The House bill would bar the practice. Full Story
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![Nimitz Middle School students take part in a class activity Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
School voucher bill gets initial approval in the Texas Senate, heads over to a more skeptical House
The Senate also approved Senate Bill 2, which would infuse $5.2 billion to school districts to help them with teacher raises and rising costs. Gov. Greg Abbott said he would add those items to the special session’s agenda once lawmakers approve a voucher program. Full Story
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![Students work at their desks at Blanco Vista Elementary School in San Marcos on Monday August, 23, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for the Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate unveils its priority school voucher bill
The proposal would give families who exit the state’s public education system access to $8,000 of taxpayer money each year to pay for their children’s private schooling. Full Story
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![Protesters holding signs and chanting, gathering in front of the Governor's Mansion during a rally against school vouchers on Oct. 7, 2023. Hundreds gathered to protest two days before a special session was slated to begin on Oct. 9, 2023.]()
Credit: Julius Shieh/The Texas Tribune -
Vouchers return this special session — and school funding might be left out. Here’s what you need to know.
Gov. Greg Abbott called lawmakers back to Austin to try again to pass education savings accounts, which would let families use state funds to pay for their children’s private schooling. Teacher pay was not part of his agenda. Full Story
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![Chyrece Campbell holds Pierce Campbell as he looks up at the rotunda at the state capitol. Chyrece and her children, also pictured, Madison, Gregory and Kennedy, are visiting the capitol on the first day of the 86th legislative session. Miguel Gutierrez Jr.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas Republicans ended a patchwork of local rules they say hurt business. They also eroded powers of city councils.
Lawmakers delivered Gov. Greg Abbott a long-sought bill to stop local governments from enacting local laws that exceed state law on a number of fronts. Full Story
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![An aerial view of homes near Interstate 45 in Houston, on Sept. 16, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate again advances proposed restrictions on lessons about gender identity and sexual orientation
For the third time, the Senate is pushing a proposal critics say will ignore the existence of LGBTQ people in every grade level. Two other bills that contained similar language missed key legislative deadlines. Full Story
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![Students sit in art class at Lufkin High School in Lufkin, Texas, U.S., on Friday, January 27, 2023. Public school officials in rural areas like Lufkin face budget challenges because of proposed school choice legislation, which provides taxpayer-funded alternatives to sending a child to a local public school.]()
Credit: Callaghan O'Hare for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate committee revamps school funding bill to revive voucher-like proposal
The Senate education committee has drastically changed House Bill 100 after Gov. Greg Abbott signaled he would call a special session if a voucher-like program didn’t pass. Full Story
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![Chana Jones' classroom in Snyder Primary School in Snyder on Monday, April. 17, 2023.]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
Time runs out for taxpayer-funded private school tuition bill as special session looms
Gov. Greg Abbott has already signaled he would call a special session if lawmakers failed to pass a voucher-like program open to all students. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott speaks during an event held by the Parent Empowerment Coalition at Annapolis Christian Academy on Jan. 31, 2023, in Corpus Christi.]()
Credit: Angela Piazza/Corpus Christi Caller-Times via REUTERS -
School voucher bill hangs by a thread as key deadline approaches
The House public education committee chair said Wednesday he currently has no plans to bring the bill for a vote. Gov. Greg Abbott has vowed to call a special session if the House doesn’t “expand the scope of school choice.” Full Story
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![State Rep. Brad Buckley, R-Killeen, speaks on the House floor in Austin on April 06, 2023.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texas GOP’s broadest attempt yet to erode blue cities’ power gets one step closer to becoming law
Gov. Greg Abbott and other supporters of the bill have long sought legislation to push back against local regulations that they say hamper business owners and harm the state’s economy. Full Story
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![The Austin skyline on July 13, 2022.]()
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Amended bill would keep tenure at Texas public universities
A new version of Senate Bill 18 scheduled for a hearing in the House Higher Education Committee on Monday would keep faculty tenure and direct university governing boards to establish policies to grant and revoke tenure. Full Story
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![Students walk through campus at the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas on Tuesday, March 22, 2022.]()
Credit: Emil Lippe for The Texas Tribune -
For thousands of Texas professors seeking tenure, a bill banning the benefit could be a turning point in their careers
While the proposed tenure ban will likely face steep opposition in the Texas House, faculty say lawmakers’ recent attacks on higher education have raised concerns about whether Texas is the best state to build their career. Full Story
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![Tara Goddard, assistant professor within the Texas A&M School of Architecture's Department of Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning, is pictured at her home office in College Station.]()
Credit: Meredith Seaver for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House approves sweeping limits on local regulations in GOP’s latest jab at blue cities
City officials say the full scope of the legislation advanced Tuesday is still unclear, but it would limit their ability to issue worker protections, water restrictions and more. Full Story
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![State Rep. Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, on the House floor on May 14.]()
Credit: Juan Figueroa/The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate approves education savings account bill — but House signals a tough road ahead
A Texas House vote earlier in the day suggests Senate Bill 8 might be short of the votes needed to pass in the lower chamber. Senators also passed a bill on Thursday that would give teachers a one-time bonus. Full Story
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![Elementary students learn about amphibians at REACH Homeschool Co-op in Clear Lake, TX on Friday, Oct. 14, 2022.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
LGBTQ groups criticize Texas bill’s broad restrictions on school lessons and activities about sexuality and gender identity
Senate Bill 8 supporters say the legislation protects the rights of parents who don’t want their kids to learn about gender identity and sexual orientation. Critics say it could force schools to ignore the existence of LGBTQ people. Full Story
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![Free pronoun buttons at the AISD "Pride Out!" Party in the Park event at Eastside Early College High School in Austin on Saturday, Mar. 26, 2022. There were fill-in-the-blank and other options not pictured as well.]()
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Texas cities have adopted ordinances to benefit workers. Sweeping legislation could roll many back.
Lawmakers say their bills are needed to provide small businesses with consistent regulations and that regulatory power should be returned to the state. Labor groups say the proposal could undo hard-fought measures to protect workers. Full Story
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Bill would make UT-Austin center formerly known as Liberty Institute into its own college
Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, has filed legislation that would establish The Civitas School of Civic and International Leadership as a formal college at the University of Texas at Austin. Full Story
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![Students walk through campus at the University of Texas at Austin on Aug. 25, 2021.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Texas families would get $8,000 in tax dollars to send students to private school in sweeping “parental rights” bill backed by lieutenant governor
The bill, which has the blessing of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, will create new rules on how gender and sexual orientation is taught. It will face a tougher test in the House. Full Story
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![An empty classroom at Chapa Middle School in Kyle on Aug. 24, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate’s priority bills on higher ed would end tenure, diversity policies
The bills are part of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s list of priorities and, if passed as filed, could have profound impacts on how Texas universities recruit top faculty and other employees. Full Story
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![University of Houston students back on campus in Houston on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2017, after Hurricane Harvey.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune
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