Charter Schools Not Always the Answer in Texas

Struggling TX Districts Turning to Charter Schools

http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/23870-1
December 16, 2011
AUSTIN, Texas - As more cash-strapped Texas school districts consider turning over classrooms and campuses to private operators, new research is undercutting popular notions that charter schools are performing miracles in their classrooms.

The Austin School Board this week had to delay a vote on partnering with the IDEA chain of schools after fierce community opposition dominated a hearing.

Louis Malfaro, secretary treasurer of the Texas American Federation of Teachers, says some district officials, in a rush for solutions, are ignoring facts.

"Are we going to look at data and research, or are we just going to shoot from the hip? We know most charter schools are either underperforming or doing no better than regular public schools."

A recent study commissioned by the Texas Business and Education Coalition tracked students in so-called "high-performing" charter schools. It found that well-publicized chains - such as IDEA, KIPP, YES, and Harmony - serve selective student bodies, despite their "open-enrollment" charters. Malfaro says it's highly motivated families who tend to apply, and the schools often weed out youths who underperform - skewing their student populations toward the easiest to educate.

"They enroll a lower percentage of economically disadvantaged students, of special-education students, bilingual students, students with disabilities, and students who were doing poorly to begin with."

While IDEA boasts that 100 percent of its high-school graduates go on to college, the study shows that more than a third of its ninth-graders are returned to public school by the time they're seniors. Malfaro says he's not against all charter schools, and that some have proved innovative with specific types of students.

Proponents say the charter trend is giving parents more education choices, but Malfaro says it comes at the expense of accountability. He also notes the implications for employees such as teachers.

"We hear these institutions telling us, 'We're about innovative ways of attracting teachers.' If that's the case, why are you unwilling to work with your own teachers in any sort of a collective way, or give them basic on-the-job protections?"

Malfaro cites studies showing schools chartered in recent years have a higher teacher turnover rate than do public schools.

Austin trustees are to resume the charter debate Monday.http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/23870-1

More Than 150 Districts Sue the State Over Inequitable, Arbitrary Funding

More Than 150 Districts Sue the State Over Inequitable, Arbitrary Funding

The first of several anticipated legal challenges to the state’s school-finance system was filed today in Austin by a coalition of more than 150 school districts, along with individual taxpayers and parents. The biggest of seven districts named as original plaintiffs against the state is San Antonio ISD.

Teacher Layoffs Felt In Classrooms, Katy ISD Still Cutting Positions

Teacher Layoffs Felt In Classrooms

Read the entire article here:  http://www.click2houston.com/education/28806255/detail.html

 The final budget cuts and number of teacher layoffs may vary from school district to school district, but almost no school in the Houston area is escaping them this year. You may not see the signs of those the layoffs and cuts on the first day of school, but teachers and principals said they will show more and more as the year moves on.

"There are just more kids to teach and fewer teachers to teach them," said Andy Dewey, executive vice president of the Houston Federation of Teachers. "That's going to show up one way or another."

The Houston Independent School District is the largest school district in the state. HISD lost 500 teachers after final layoffs. In HISD, principals made the final decisions on how budget cuts would affect their schools.

Killeen Case Sets New Precedent to Help Laid Off Teachers

Killeen: ISD Ordered To Reinstate 4 Terminated Teachers

The state has ordered the Killeen ISD to rehire four teachers who were terminated as part of a cost-cutting move earlier this year.

KILLEEN (July 8, 2011)—Texas Education Commissioner Robert Scott ruled Tuesday that the Killeen ISD must rehire four of the 150 teachers whose contracts were not renewed earlier this year as part of a cost-cutting measure in response to deep cuts in state funding for public schools.
The four teachers, all members of the Association of Texas Professional Educators, appealed the reduction in force in May.

One of the four, Aloysius Cooper, whom the KISD had employed for 15 years and who worked as an academic adviser, said he shouldn’t have been terminated in the first place.
“I didn’t know what I was going to do. I had been interviewing for assistant principal jobs, and it’s been stressful,” Cooper said.
“Now, I feel like I at least have the option of returning to my position and to do what I need to do to help students be successful. That’s the bottom line.”
The district was ordered to reinstate the teachers and to pay the four any back pay and benefits from the time their contracts weren’t renewed, but the ruling gives the district the option of paying the teachers one year’s salary from the date they would have been rehired.
Attorney Rick Arnett, who represented the four teachers, said the district’s board violated its local RIF policy by allowing principals to select “less favored or disfavored employees for termination and then failing to try to place them in open positions” for which they were qualified.
“As far as we know, the Killeen cases are the first to be appealed to the commissioner,” he said.
“Under the current political climate, we believe there may be more situations next spring in which districts decide they need to reduce staff,” Arnett said.

Texas Republican Lawmakers Advocate Raising Taxes to Cover Cuts in Education

Some Texas Republican lawmakers are advocating raising taxes in order to make up for the recent $4 billion cuts to public education.  Only a few days after the passage of major budget cuts to Texas, most of which devastate the health care industry and pubic education, reality is setting in.  Even the G.O.P. realizes that in order to make things work, we will have to – ahem – “raise taxes”.  That’s right, when Governor Rick Perry prides himself on a state that has job growth without raising taxes, Texas has put itself in a hole so big, even Republican lawmakers find themselves advocating for one of the biggest issues they have always stood against.  

Who Voted for SB8 Which Cut Funding to Schools and Decimated Teacher Rights?

Who is responsible for SB8 and the attack on teacher pay and contract safeguards in Texas? 

"...For the first time in Texas' known history, student enrollment growth will not be funded. The approximately 170,000 new students entering the school system during the new two years will have to be absorbed with fewer resources and fewer teachers....Already ranked 44th nationally in what it spends on education per pupil, Texas' further funding decrease will have a consequence in the classroom, there is no doubt.  Perhaps it will have another consequence as well. Just perhaps, in the next election, everyday Texans will let us know that their voices, those of the greater good, are more important than those extremists who currently hold sway in the halls of the Texas Capitol." - Texas Senator Wendy Davis

These congressmen and women are counting on the fact that we will forget what happened on June 29, 2011 when we vote in 2013.  When teachers see their colleagues being let go in the middle of the year with little or no recourse to challenge their administrations, remember which congressmen made this happen.  When they see districts lowering pay and stipends to make up for the $4 billion loss to education in Texas, remember that it was our votes that put these people into office.  Senate Bill 8 will be devastating to education in the coming years.  This will affect how teachers teach and who they teach.  It will lower the power of our workforce in Texas and thus our business strength and competitiveness.  Remember who made the decisions to do this in the name of "fiscal responsibility".  Rob Eissler and Florence Shapiro are the parties responsible for authoring this devastating legislation and vehemently supporting it.  Ironically, Eissler has in the past been supported by teacher unions.  This betrayal will likely not go unnoticed.  Even seventeen Republicans voted against this bill and for their conscience. 

In the Texas Senate, the final vote to pass SB 8 was 19 to 11.  In the House, the final vote to pass SB 8 was 80 to 63.  

If you would like to know who the legislator is in your area, click here.

 

First, we cannot ignore the politician who called these special sessions until he got exactly what he wanted and who will ultimately sign and support this legislation, Governor Rick Perry.  Don't forget Perry also appointed the AUTHOR of the bill, Rob Eissler to be the Chair of the House Public Education Committee.  

Texas Lawmakers Approve Bill That Cuts School Funding

LEGISLATORS WHO VOTED FOR SB8 AND AGAINST TEACHER RIGHTS IN TEXAS:

HOUSE

Rob Eissler of The Woodlands (House author of SB 8);

Jose Aliseda of Beeville; 

Charles Anderson of Waco;
Rodney Anderson of Plano;
Jimmy Don Aycock of Killeen;
Marva Beck of Centerville;
Leo Berman of Tyler;
Dennis Bonnen of Angleton;
Dan Branch of Dallas;
Cindy Burkett of Mesquite;
Angie Chen Button of Richardson;
Erwin Cain of Como;
Bill Callegari of Houston;
Warren Chisum of Pampa;
Wayne Christian of Nacogdoches;
Byron Cook of Corsicana;
Tom Craddick of Midland;
Brandon Creighton of Conroe;
Myra Crownover of Lake Dallas;
John Davis of Houston;
Sarah Davis of Houston;
Gary Elkins of Houston;
Allen Fletcher of Tomball;
Dan Flynn of Canton;
John Frullo of Lubbock;
John Garza of San Antonio;
Charlie Geren of River Oaks;
Larry Gonzales of Round Rock;
Kelly Hancock of Fort Worth; (wrote article justifying the cuts)
Rick Hardcastle of Vernon;
Patricia Harless of Spring; (declared would vote "no" but voted "yes" instead)
Linda Harper-Brown of Irving;
Will Hartnett of Dallas;
Harvey Hilderbran of Kerrville;
Charlie Howard of Sugar Land; (declared would vote "no" but voted "yes" instead)
Dan Huberty of Humble;
Bryan Hughes of Marshall;
Todd Hunter of Corpus Christi;
Jason Isaac of Dripping Springs;
Jim Jackson of Carrollton;
Jim Keffer of Granbury;
Phil King of Weatherford;
Tim Kleinschmidt of Lexington;
Lois Kolkhorst of Brenham;
John Kuempel of Seguin;
Lyle Larson of San Antonio;
Jodie Laubenberg of Rockwall;
George Lavender of Texarkana;
Ken Legler of Pasadena;
Lanham Lyne of Wichita Falls;
Jerry Madden of Plano;
Dee Margo of El Paso;
Doug Miller of New Braunfels;
Sid Miller of Stephenville;
Geanie Morrison of Victoria;
Jim Murphy of Houston;
Barbara Nash of Arlington;
Rob Orr of Burleson;
John Otto of Dayton;
Tan Parker of Flower Mound;
Ken Paxton of McKinney;
Charles Perry of Lubbock;
Walter “Four” Price of Amarillo;
Charles Schwertner of Georgetown;
Connie Scott of Corpus Christi;
Kenneth Sheets of Dallas;
Ralph Sheffield of Temple;
Mark Shelton of Fort Worth;
David Simpson of Longview;
Todd Smith of Bedford;
Wayne Smith of Baytown;
John Smithee of Amarillo;
Burt Solomons of Carrollton;
Larry Taylor of League City;
Vicki Truitt of Southlake;
Randy Weber of Pearland;
Beverly Woolley of Houston;
Paul Workman of Spicewood (Austin);
Bill Zedler of Arlington,
John Zerwas of Simonton.

SENATE

Florence Shapiro of Plano (author of SB 8);
Brian Birdwell of Granbury;
John Carona of Dallas;
Robert Deuell of Greenville;
Robert Duncan of Lubbock;
Kevin Eltife of Tyler;
Craig Estes of Wichita Falls;
Troy Fraser of Horseshoe Bay;
Chris Harris of Arlington;
Glenn Hegar of Katy;
Joan Huffman of Southside Place (Harris County);
Mike Jackson of La Porte;
Jane Nelson of Flower Mound;
Robert Nichols of Jacksonville;
Steve Ogden of Bryan; (actually advocated that schools raise taxes to make up the difference)
Dan Patrick of Houston;
Kel Seliger of Amarillo;
Jeff Wentworth of San Antonio;
Tommy Williams of The Woodlands.

How Much Do Teachers Make Around The World?

How much do teachers make around the world? See the infographic below.  Around the world most people agree that educating our children is important for our countries and our future.  However, as budget cuts loom over the heads of everyone who takes money from the government, debates emerge over how much teachers should be paid and how much work they do. 

Teachers, Coaches and the Dual Contract: Another Tool for Teacher Termination

"Coaching is nothing more than eliminating mistakes before you get fired." - Lou Holtz

Teachers are often assigned many duties outside of their normal classroom duties which, in and of themselves, can be very demanding. Some teachers also give up their time to coach a sport or academic event. They usually receive a stipend on top of their yearly salary for that extra duty. But every coach knows that if one were to do the math and add up all the hours spent versus what they were getting paid coaching, it would amount to a paltry few cents per hour. On the average, athletic stipends (especially football) - this IS Texas - can get pretty high, running up into the $5-$20K range, academic coaches and others may run from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars.

Final Version of SB 8 Maintains Assault on Classroom Teachers

Update: This bill passed the house and senate and moves to the governor's desk for signature.   

See who voted for and against it and how it will affect everyone who has a stake in public education in Texas.

Final Version of SB 8 Maintains Assault on Classroom Teachers

 
The ten Republican senators and representatives on the House-Senate conference committee for Senate Bill 8 have finished their work on a final version of the bill, and an ugly piece of work it is. The bill would consummate a six-month-long assault on salary guarantees and contract safeguards for Texas teachers and other school employees, making entirely unnecessary, permanent changes in state law under the false flag of “flexibility” for school boards faced with cuts in state aid.

Lawmakers Who Attack Education Are Feeling The Backlash

by Fred Martin
 
In case anyone was wondering, the majority of Americans seem to care about their children's education.  Even when we hear again and again the same lines about fiscal responsibility, spending and budget crunches, we also know that there are good choices and bad choices to be made.  Those that make bad choices, choices that hurt our children's education for years to come, those that sacrifice education for lower taxes or bigger business, are now paying a price by way of public opinion.

In Alabama, one Representative switched parties because of the damage his party was doing to education in that state. 

Current Cuts Are The Direct Result of Fiscal Irresponsibility

by Fred Martin

A Letter From Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn to Governor Rick Perry regarding the Perry Tax Plan in 2006 is prophetic and frighteningly accurate.  Where we are financially in Texas in large part due to poor financial decision making on the part of the Texas Legislature and Governor Rick Perry.  Carole Strayhorn knew the direction we were headed in 2006.  This was a critical year for our overall state budget and for education funding.  

The Death Star Bill - Will It Prevent Layoffs or Become a Slippery Slope?

Read the entire article here: http://www.the33tv.com/news/kdaf-texas-house-approves-death-star-bill-story,0,1911416.story

The 'Death Star Bill' would enable school districts to reduce teacher salaries, impose unpaid furlough days and alter contract notification requirements.
Arlington's Dana Smith said, "I think it's honestly horrible. Teachers work really, really hard at what they do everyday. And, I think they go above and beyond. Honestly, they barely get enough money for what they do, so it's really sad."
"They look at their ratings. They teach. They have meetings after school. They have parent meetings. And, all the sudden it looks like they're getting the brunt of all the fall out, all the responsibility for the recession on the state budget," Shaw said.
The Texas Association of School Administrators says the bill gives districts the ability to deal with unprecedented cuts by giving them more flexibility.
The Death Star Bill has created a divide in the education community. While many school administrators support it, teachers have tried several times to kill the bill.
"They're not happy, they're not happy at all," Shaw said. "Anytime people are not happy, it comes through in their work product as well."

Rob Eissler's Ideological Crusade - HB8

The Spawn of HB 400—New Attack on Salary Guarantees, Contract Rights is in SB 8, and Rep. Rob Eissler Is Determined to See It Through
 
The Spawn of HB 400—Attack on Salary Standards, Contract Rights Returns in SB 8:  State Rep. Rob Eissler, Republican of The Woodlands, is at it again, resurrecting his failed attack on educators’ salary standards and contract rights in a committee substitute for Senate Bill 8. Eissler’s new version of SB 8 recombines and tweaks elements he had included in his failed HB 400 during the regular session and that he has parceled out into five separate bills (HB 17 through HB 21) in the special session. Eissler postponed action on two of these piecemeal bills Tuesday, and--for reasons best known to him—he now wants to force the Texas House to vote again, as early as Thursday, on the following menu of bad ideas in his committee substitute for SB 8:

Representative Rob Eissler: How a Hometown Hero Of Education Has Supporters Shaking Their Heads

Representative Rob Eissler:  How a Hometown Hero Of Education Has Supporters Shaking Their Heads

by Fred Martin

Republican Rep. Rob Eissler of The Woodlands is one of the architects of HB8 and many of the measures that threaten the lives of educators across Texas. Who is he?  And what does he want with public education?  His background is extensive and his accolades are numerous.  In the past he has been a hometown hero for education, but now he has many of his grassroots supporters confused if not down right angry.

Tell Your State Rep What You Think

Tell Your State Rep What You Think, By Phone and By E-Mail! Key House Votes Thursday on School Finance, Class Size, Contract Rights, Layoffs

SB 1, a bill that permanently cuts state funding for local school districts by $4 billion, is scheduled for action on the Texas House floor shortly after 10 am Thursday morning, June 9. Also on the agenda is SB 2, a bill to adjust the two-year budget passed on May 29.

Texas Senate OKs teacher pay cuts, furloughs

Educators protest bill to help districts deal with slashed funding.  A Fort Bend teacher responds.

Read more: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7598663.html#ixzz1OdcWHwn6

AUSTIN — Legislation allowing school districts to reduce teacher pay and furlough them — to help absorb big budget cuts — sailed through the Texas Senate on Monday with a straight party-line vote.

Lawmakers are working to cut $4 billion from the state's 1,040 public school districts. Giving school administrators flexibility to cut teacher pay and allow up to six days of unpaid leave — which existing law does not allow — will save teacher jobs, Senate Education Chair Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, said of school reform measure SB 8.

Fort Bend ISD Cuts Fine Arts and Business Programs Year After Year

by Fred Martin
 
Two of the most important things that colleges and universities across this country look at to determine if high school seniors are accepted into their ranks are SAT/ACT scores and extra curricular activities such as fine arts, sports and other competitive events.  Many schools across the state are making cuts to those areas in addition to laying off teachers.  How will this affect our students' chances for entering universities if they are offered fewer and fewer opportunities for extracurricular involvement?

Rep. Villarreal speaks against CSHB 1

Rep. Villarreal speaks against CSHB 1, the 2012-2013 Texas budget, as a part of the House of Representatives floor meeting, May 28, 2011. For more updates from the legislative session, visit legetv.org.


"[We] should have seen this coming...In 2007 our budget shortfall was 8%...In 2009 that hole nearly doubled in size to 14%...In 2011 the hole again nearly doubled to 27%.  How are we solving this now?  Through a cuts only and accounting tricks approach to the budget...Texas cannot grow itself out of this problem...because our population is growing less educated...because we are failing to educate them.  It didn't have to be this way.  The governor and the legislature made a choice to do this.  They could have chosen to use some of the rainy day funds to pay for the next two years, they chose not to.  They could have chosen to close tax loopholes and make all corporations pay their fair share.  They chose not to.  They could have chosen to fix our broken business tax.  They chose not to.  Instead, this legislature chose to balance the budget on the backs of vulnerable Texans..."

Thank You Senator Davis

Stout Resistance Slows, Then Stops an Awful School-Finance Bill; Special Session Could Be Called

By a closer margin than expected, the Texas House passed a bad school-finance bill Sunday night, but the bill was stopped dead in the Senate at midnight thanks to a filibuster by Sen. Wendy Davis, Democrat of Fort Worth. The House debate and Davis’s filibuster speech brought into sharp focus the strong reasons for opposing SB 1811, which contains the enforcement mechanism for the deep cuts in public education included in the 2012-2013 budget bill passed yesterday.
 

The New Texas Budget and Our Schools

by Fred Martin

The new Texas budget deal means nearly $500 less per student for their education per year.  There are cuts across the board in social services, but don't worry, says Perry, the new budget will "protect Texas taxpayers".  Again.  And that protection increases as a Texan makes more money, unless, of course, you have a son or daughter in the public school system.  We sure hope that the private school system thing works out for Texas soon, because we will all be suffering tremendously in the mean time.

Are The Texas Lottery Proceeds Going To Education?

Are The Texas Lottery Proceeds Going To Education?  Isn't that what we voted for in the 1990's? 
KPRC Local 2 Investigates provides some answers. 
Watch the entire report here.

We all know proceeds from the Texas Lottery are supposed to help pay for public education, but Local 2 Investigates found not all lottery money is going there.  Schools in Houston and across Texas are facing shutdowns, teacher layoffs, bigger class sizes and budget cuts. However, parents and grandparents at the E.O. Smith Education Center in Houston's Fifth Ward said they don't see anything extra in their school."Considering the state the schools are in now, they must have really been in bad shape if we've received all this lottery money," said Harold Cann, a grandparent of an elementary student.Cann may be on to something.

Vote in Your Local Election TODAY!

School districts need your help.  The only way to truly affect change is with the power of your vote. 

Click here for complete information on elections in Fort Bend County and the candidates who are running!

http://thewriteideaonline.com/uploads/City_SchlBd-May__2011.pdf

Texas Proposes Cuts To Public Services, Gives Corporate Welfare to Charter Schools

Texas Considers More Corporate Welfare for Charter Schools

The only national peer-reviewed research study of charter schools concluded in 2009 that only 17% of corporate charter schools produce better test scores than matched public schools.  From the press release:

. . .17 percent of charter schools reported academic gains that were significantly better than traditional public schools, while 37 percent of charter schools showed gains that were worse than their traditional public school counterparts, with 46 percent of charter schools demonstrating no significant difference.

Why is Texas Ranked "Close To Last" in Education Spending?

44th?! What is Tommy Lee Talking About?

Raise Your Hand.Org made the statement through the Tommy Lee Jones commercial that Texas was ranked 44th in spending per pupil.  There are many factors that go into accounting for education spending.  All things considered, this number is accurate. 

Raise Your Hand Foundation Speaks Out for Texas Education

Out of the fifty states, Texas ranks 44th in education spending per student.  Forty-fourth.  That's pretty close to last.  Now the Texas legislature is trying to cut education spending even further.  That means our kids get less of what they need to learn and compete.  That's unacceptable.  This affects your children, your grand children and our future.  It's time to take action.  Join me and thousands more concerned Texans at Raise Your Hand Texas dot org.  Don't bankrupt our future by cutting back on our kids.

Texas Taxpayers Finance Formula One Auto Races as Schools Dismiss Teachers

Texas Taxpayers Finance Formula One Auto Races as Schools Dismiss Teachers  -Bloomberg

Texas, which may balance its budget by firing thousands of teachers, plans to commit $25 million in state funds to Formula One auto racing each year for a decade.
Four years after motorsports’ most popular series left the U.S., Texas investors including Clear Channel Communications Inc. co-founder B.J. “Red” McCombs are building a 3.4-mile (5.5-kilometer) track to bring the event to Austin. Comptroller Susan Combs has agreed to pay $25 million for races through 2022, a subsidy questioned by critics and lawmakers as the state cuts costs to close an estimated $15 billion two-year deficit.
“I don’t understand why 25 people in Austin could not put up $1 million each if they thought this was a good opportunity instead of the state making a $25 million commitment,” said Senator Dan Patrick, a Houston Republican. “The developers should find the money through private sources.”

Texas State Rep. Ron Reynolds on HB1

On Wednesday, Jan. 19, Chairman Pitts (R-Waxahachie) filed House Bill 1, the proposed state budget for fiscal year 2012-2013. The released draft was a reality check on the highly anticipated, yet dismal financial condition facing Texas as a result of a $26.8 billion dollar shortfall ensuing from a structural deficit within the budgeting system. “It is clear now more than ever before that we need to identify new and stable revenue streams if we are to prevent such drastic shortfalls in the future. The introduced House budget does not take into consideration the population growth in our state.  As our population continues to grow, our resources will be spread even thinner,” Rep. Ron Reynolds (D- Fort Bend) commented.
The projected budget appropriates a combined $156.4 billion in State and Local funds, which is $31.1 billion less than the prior biennium, while the State General Revenue appropriation of $72.2 billion is $8.4 billion less than the previous two-year budget.
“This budget proposed by the State’s leadership underscores the uncertainty for the future of Texas’ working families, children, students, and senior citizens,” stated Reynolds. The current working draft proposes a 23 percent cut to public education, zero funding for some of the smaller community colleges, a reduction in healthcare and social services, cuts to higher education and research funding, and the elimination of the TEXAS Grants (the state’s primary financial aid program for new college students).

The Texas Ten - Will They Be Teacher Friendly?

House-Senate Budget Negotiators Named:  Ten Texas lawmakers will have a big say in the future of your students, your school, and your job. They are the so-called “conferees” named to negotiate a deal on the state budget for 2012-2013. The five House members appointed by House Speaker Joe Straus on Friday are:  Republicans Jim Pitts of Waxahachie, John Otto of Dayton, John Zerwas of Richmond, and Myra Crownover of Denton, plus Democrat Sylvester Turner of Houston. The five state senators appointed today by Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, presiding officer of the Senate, are:  Republicans Steve Ogden of Bryan, RobertDuncan of Lubbock, Jane Nelson of Flower Mound, and Tommy Williams of TheWoodlands, plus Democrat Juan Hinojosa of McAllen.

Texas school systems hang on to big-bucks reserve funds while laying off teachers

Read the entire story here: http://www.texaswatchdog.org/2011/05/texas-school-systems-hold-on-to-rainy-day-funds-teacher-layoffs/1305032157.story

Texas’ largest school systems are laying off teachers by the hundreds and thousands while hanging on to the tens of millions of dollars in their “rainy day” and reserve funds -- and some in those communities, including some teachers, say that’s a bad idea.

From the Field: A Teacher's Perspective on the Budget Crisis

From the Field: A Teacher's Perspective on the Budget Crisis

(Note: This is a letter written from a teacher to her superintendent, in response to information he sent about potential state budget cuts to education and specifically to the Teacher Retirement System.)

Mr. Hancock:

I am not usually vocal on these matters, but felt compelled to share my observations and opinions with you on these things.

Parent Teacher Association responds to state education funding crisis.

Members of the statewide Parent Teacher Association were polled on what to do about state funding for education and here’s what they said:

Urge Your State Rep to Vote “NO” on HB 400, Unless the Phillips Alternative is Adopted

Urge Your State Rep to Vote “NO” on HB 400, Unless the Phillips Alternative is Adopted:  Back on the Texas House agenda for Friday is House Bill 400, the so-called “flexibility” plan to provide “mandate relief” at the expense of students and teachers. Please call and tell your State Rep. to Vote "No" on HB 400. We'll automatically connect you to your state representative's office and provide you with talking points to nix this plan. You can also send your rep. an online letter here.

Help Save Texas School Libraries

Help Save Texas School Libraries

Texas school libraries need your help. We know how important it is to ensure that all our students have access to quality school library programs.

As you watch the state and local news, you know that many hard budgeting decisions are being made during this challenging time. Unfortunately, many school library programs - programs that have proven and longstanding importance to student education - are being cut. School librarians, who are key in teaching students research, information literacy, and reading, are being asked to cover multiple campuses (leaving school with only part-time school library programs) or are being cut altogether.

Texas Senate Passes Job-Killing Budget Bill

On Wednesday, the Texas Senate passed their version of a job-killing, fiscally irresponsible budget bill.

A majority of the Texas Senate took advantage of a seldom-used procedural device to pass the Senate’s budget plan today. The 19-member Republican majority, opposed by a solid bloc of all 12 Senate Democrats, first dumped a part of the bill that would have tapped the Rainy Day Fund for $3 billion to reduce budget cuts. Then the majority rammed through the budget and sent it on to the Texas House, which has already passed an even worse budget for 2012-2013. The two versions now must be reconciled.

Contact Your Legislator and Urge Them To Vote "No"!

Click here to send an online letter urging your state senator to vote "NO!" on the Senate Budget Plan

You also can call your senator’s office toll-free:  1-888-836-8368. Just tell the operator your senator’s name and ask to be put through. (Need to find out who represents you? Click here.) If the office is closed you can leave a message. Your message can be very simple: Vote no on the Senate budget plan, Texas can do better! If you have time, you can make these points:

Community Partners Rally to Save Fort Bend Education

Community Partners Rally to Save Fort Bend Education

Organizers anticipating hundreds to voice opposition to education cuts

School Districts Play The Lay Off Then Re-Hire Game Again

Since last year, many school districts including Fort Bend ISD and Houston ISD have laid off hundreds if not thousands of teachers only to create job openings weeks later to rehire some of them back or to hire new people in old positions that teachers were forced out of. In the article below we can see this happening in Houston ISD and is about to happen again, for the second year in a row, in Fort Bend ISD. This absurd strategy of getting rid of too many classroom jobs, laying off very few if any administrative jobs and then rehiring to fill some of the positions they gave up weeks before is mind boggling. While school administrations may have found a loophole to get rid of bad teachers, they are throwing out the baby with the bathwater. 

Why Do Plans like the Teacher Retirement System work? And Who Wants It Gone?

Bill to Undermine Guaranteed TRS Pension Benefits on Committee Agenda Tuesday

Texas AFT will testify in vehement opposition tomorrow to a bill in the House Pension Committee that would put an end to the defined-benefit TRS pension system for all those hired after August 2012. The bill, HB 2506 by Rep. Warren Chisum, Republican of Pampa, would mandate that newly hired school employees enter a defined-contribution plan instead. Chisum’s bill is the latest version of a bad idea pushed by zealots of the far right without success for more than a decade.

Why Do Plans like the Teacher Retirement System work?

Fort Bend ISD students rally for their teachers after layoffs 

KHOU Channel 11 - Students in Fort Bend ISD took to the streets Wednesday afternoon demanding that "no teacher be left behind" because of budget cuts.
The district has already eliminated about 300 teacher positions.　

Fort Bend Holds Rally to Encourage School Funding

You can vote at ANY of the following locations during early voting:

Willowridge High School, Ft. Bend Admin Building, & Sugar Land Methodist Church,

Hightower High School, Mo. City Comm. Center, Aliana Clubhouse,

Lost Creek Park, First Colony Conf. Center, & Sugar Land City Hall 

Dallas ISD Opens Website to Deal With Historic Budget Cuts

Dallas ISD Opens Website to Deal With Historic Budget Cuts
The website is Dallas Friends of Public Education or DFPE.

DISD is facing historic budget cuts, perhaps as much as $260 million, or 20% of the district’s entire budget. Consistent with our mission, DFPE will be advocating strongly to protect students from these deep cuts. That means finding ways to cut administrative overhead rather than classroom teachers and supplies. We want to identify every administrative budget that should be cut – everything from the outright wasteful to the "nice but something we can live without" – before classroom budgets are cut. To do this, we need your help. We need the help of the public, parents, taxpayers and the many veteran DISD teachers and staff who know which administrative functions are necessary and which are not.

Fort Bend ISD Changes Policy of Denying Conference Periods During TAKS

Teachers in Texas have a right to 450 minutes of planning and conference time every ten days.  However, many school districts think it is OK to take away that right when TAKS testing comes along.  That policy violates teachers' rights.  The Texas Education Agency reportedly indicated that teachers should be offered that planning an preparation time even during TAKS.

Don't Be Fooled By Texas "Mandate Relief" Bills - They Hurt Teachers, Classrooms and Students

Assault on the Classroom Comes to Texas House and Senate, Disguised as “Mandate Relief”

HB 400 and SB 12, two bills that would provide school districts with “mandate relief” at the expense of students and teachers, are coming to the floor of the House and Senate. But don't be fooled by the names, they are both wolves in sheep's clothing.  HB 400 by Rep. Rob Eissler, Republican of The Woodlands, will be on the House floor for a vote on Thursday. SB 12, by Republican Sen. Florence Shapiro of Plano, is on the Senate calendar and eligible for a vote as early as tomorrow, Wednesday, April 20.

If there's one message that the Texas working public should send to Congress, it's vote no on SB 12.

Teacher Says Students are the Reason Why Legislators Should Change Their Tune

A teacher at Mountlake Terrace High School has begun his own protest against Washington state's destructive budget cuts to education.  It is making waves on the website and the Facebook page.  And back home, as more students and teachers get involved in the divisive politics of Texas, surely Austin must soon understand that everyone who is listening is also a voter.

http://www.160reasons.org/Home.html
http://www.facebook.com/160Reasons?sk=wall#!/160Reasons

There are about 160 reasons why I urge you to demand from your legislators that they immediately stop a horrific injustice that they’re about to inflict on public education and the kids of our state. Those 160 reasons are the students I see in my classroom every day at Mountlake Terrace High School.

But those are my 160 reasons. In fact, there are more than one million reasons — each and every one of the students across our state. So, I invite you to share your reasons for fighting for our public schools.

Katy ISD Students Make Their Voices Heard All The Way To Austin

Walk outs, demonstrations, You Tube videos, all are becoming part of a growing public protest to Texas budget cuts and overall lack of funding to education that has recently devastated classrooms with massive layoffs and cuts in programs across Texas.  

Katy ISD students are making a valiant effort now to make their voices heard.  Teachers are often hesitant to stand against their own administrations or school boards when their jobs could be on the line.  So they depend on others to do it for them.  In this case, it's the people who are the most affected by public school teachers, their students.   

According to sources from Katy ISD, students who protest are being threatened with disciplinary measures if they continue to do so.  Administration is reportedly threatening to take away student protesters' right to attend PROM, and their right to walk across the stage at graduation.  The students have a motto, "FFT" or "Fight For Teachers".  Katy administration is telling the students that they cannot wear those letters either. 

Their community effort has been dubbed "No Teacher Left Behind" and is accessible on  Facebook.

This letter written by a few determined Katy ISD students was sent out to legislators and senators at the state level.  Their point is clear and their initiative couldn't be more timely.  What follows is KHOU Channel 11's report on the student activists.  

Is Rick Perry Trying to Divert Federal Money Intended for Education Jobs?

Federal Educator-Jobs Funding Set to Flow Soon—a Test for the Legislature

Posted on April 12, 2011 by Texas AFT Staff

The recently completed federal budget deal for fiscal 2011 will trigger the release of $830 million for Texas from last summer’s Education Jobs bill. The money was held up by Gov. Rick Perry’s refusal to comply with the Doggett amendment, which Austin Democratic Congressman Lloyd Doggett put in the Education Jobs bill to make sure the money would be used as intended—as an addition to, rather than a substitute for, state dollars. Doggett’s amendment will be repealed as part of the budget deal when that measure is finally approved, as expected, later this week. Texas AFT President Linda Bridges had this response:
“We agree with Congressman Doggett that the Legislature now faces a telling test. With the imminent repeal of Doggett’s “Save Our Schools” amendment, the question is whether this federal money will be used by state legislators to add to the funding in the Senate Finance Committee’s draft version of the state budget for education. That’s what should happen if this federal funding is used as Congress intended–to save educator jobs.”

Teaching Jobs Can Be Saved in Texas, Some Schools Fighting Back

Teaching Jobs Can Be Saved in Texas and Some Schools are Fighting Back

Northside ISD School Board Decides To Keep 437 New Probationary Teachers

Just as the Northside ISD School Board was about to go into executive session Tuesday night, Superintendent Dr. John Folks, recommended they not terminate 437 new teachers. "He told them he could find the money elsewhere in the budget," said Pascual Gonzalez, NISD spokesman.

Classrooms Under Assault in the Texas Legislature

The Texas legislature isn't dealing with the real problem, they're making our current fiscal situation worse.

School boards and administration positions are out of control.  No one is saying that better jobs shouldn't pay better salaries.  But paying over $300,000 for any employee that takes in state, federal and local tax dollars is absurd.  

Perry's business incentives should go to teachers

My goal is to drive more of every education dollar directly into the classroom with the teachers and students, where it belongs. I would rather spend 1 billion dollars today investing in our future, than losing 13.3 billion dollars annually paying for failed policies of the past.
      —Carole Keeton Strayhorn, Texas Comptroller

If businesses thrive, this pays salaries and provides jobs which help the economy.  However true this concept may be, it has often been used to justify pouring money into private businesses while taking billions away from public institutions.  And this is where fiscal responsibility turns into the failed, destructive and utterly senseless trickle down theory.

From Texas to Pearson to Your Children - Minus A Few Thousand Teachers

Business deals with high stakes testing creators take a half a billion dollars from our state education budget and put it into the hands of ONE private company. Now that's a sweet deal! Teachers create tests all the time. I wonder if Pearson asked them for any help.

Katy ISD Announces Layoffs, Students, Teachers Respond

Not long after the layoffs, students protested against many of their teachers being let go by the Katy administration.  It appears that the sting of losing so many teachers is being felt all over Texas.  The legislature and administration buildings around the state are expecting that Texans will forget the damage that's been done to their schools and their education system.  Not likely.

Texas House Sends Disastrous Two-Year Budget to Senate

Texas AFT Legislative Hotline

Texas House Sends Disastrous Two-Year Budget to Senate (“Thank God for the Senate”)

The Texas House late Sunday night passed a destructive budget proposal that, if enacted, would devastate Texas public education. The nearly party-line vote was 98 to 49, with all but two Republican House members supporting the bill and not a single Democrat voting for it.
House Bill 1 as it left the House last night would cut $8 billion from basic state aid to school districts and chop more than $1 billion in state grants to public schools for programs like full-day pre-kindergarten. For each of the next two school years, HB 1 would leave our public schools on average with some $900 less per pupil than they are receiving in the current school year. To make their budgets balance, school districts could be forced to lay off from 80,000 to 100,000 teachers and other school employees. In the modern era of school finance, going back 60 years, there is no precedent for this sort of man-made disaster.

 

Find out how your representative Voted on HB1 HERE.

YouTube video parodies Fort Bend ISD's Superintendent, Budget Decisions

YouTube video parodies Fort Bend ISD's superintendent, criticizes district's budget decisions | abc13.com

The clip is called called "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp (Superintendent)."  It's an arguably humorous public response to a very serious statewide problem.

Many administrator's salaries are higher than those of starting professional athletes as class sizes rise, good teachers get laid off and parents are worried about the quality of their child's education.

No one is saying that better jobs shouldn't pay better salaries.  But paying over $300,000 for any employee that takes in state, federal and local tax dollars is absurd.

By way of comparison, the highest paying salary at Social Security Administration`s office in Houston is paid to the Administrative Law Judge Wc making $158,500 per year, while the lowest paying salary is paid to the Administration Office Support Student Trainee at $26,639 per year.

No regulation on local school boards leads to a shameful waste of taxpayer money.   Right now the Texas state legislature is considering taking away every safeguard that teachers have to protect their jobs.  If the legislature has their way, teachers and other non administration school employees will basically end up with the same contracts as at will employees or as those on probation.  Let's put two and two together.  Almost no oversight on school boards, superintendents and administrative positions, no rights for the middle class worker or the thousands working in public industries, no collective bargaining.  This is Rick Perry's Texas.  This is "fiscal responsibility".

Fort Bend ISD lays off 68 employees, says more cuts likely to come | abc13.com

Fort Bend ISD lays off 68 employees, says more cuts likely to come | abc13.com

http://www.click2houston.com/news/27430509/detail.html

So far, the real number here is over 400.  Those on probationary contracts had no choice but to leave, and those on term contracts were strongly encouraged to resign.  The district has until April 18, 2011 following the 45 calendar day rule to finish notifying teachers that they will be laid off due to reduction in force.

http://www.fortbendisd.com/finance/budget2011/Salary%20Percentages%20Chart.pdf

The question that many FBISD employees are asking is, "when and how are they cutting administrative positions or salaries".  If the district cuts teachers across the board and is concerned about the impact that will have on students, if Dr. Jenney truly cares about class sizes of forty or more, they should look at every opportunity to reduce the budget before they cut teachers.  This should include the more than fifteen percent of the budget that works on Lexington Avenue.

The school board said it would have preferred not to cut teachers first but they really had no choice because state law mandates that teachers not being retained the following year must know about it with at least 45 days remaining in the current school year. 

Being "forced" into cutting teachers because of the State of Texas' forty five day rule is a sorry excuse to keep from taking responsibility for the damage the majority on the board of trustees and Dr. Jenny are going to do to Fort Bend Independent School District.

Teachers Told They Can't Revoke Their Resignations but Contract Says Otherwise

The issue explained below is in regards to FBISD's Incentive Agreement and resignation agreement given to employees on April 1, 2011 and earlier.  

Please see this previous post for a more detailed explanation. 

...If you signed the resignation form, you still have seven (7) days to revoke it.   

As of today, Fort Bend ISD human resources is telling teachers and employees that they CANNOT revoke their resignation, only their INCENTIVE bonus of 10% of base pay.   

Early Voting Information for FBISD Board of Trustees

http://www.fortbendisd.com/board/ElectionInfo/2011/2011%20Election%20Order_Early%20Vote%20Sites%20and%20Times.pdf

If you live in Fort Bend ISD, please vote!  The future of the county and our children's education depends on it.

What If I Choose NOT To Resign? What Can I Do Now?

If an employee chooses not to resign from a school district, now you have a few choices available to you.  But timing is everything!  Some of the answers here apply to all districts in Texas and some are specific to Fort Bend ISD.

You can find out more information from the AFT here: What to do if you receive a Reduction In Force notice...

You Have The Right To Resign - and to Remain Silent

Teachers and employees who are laid off are given two choices.  They can either resign within seven days or face the worst fate imaginable, a non-renewal of contract.  What difference does it make?  That depends on who you are.

First Wave of Lay Offs Sweeps Through Fort Bend ISD

The first wave of lay offs swept through Fort Bend ISD today as principals were called into emergency meetings, sent back to their campuses to call teachers in to let them know that they had been laid off.   Most teachers were pulled out of classes, told they were being let go and sent back into the classrooms to go on about their day.  This is just one example of the insensitivity of Fort Bend towards its employees and their respective students.  Yes, tough decisions have to be made, but there is a right way to implement them, and laws have to be followed (that aspect will be discussed later).

Citizens Addressing Their School Board of Trustees - Deliver Writ of Remonstrance

Citizens of Fort Bend, near Houston, address their school board of trustees and deliver a writ of remonstrance asking for their resignation.  Dramatic? Yes.  But the frustration comes from numerous requests from the board and Dr. Tim Jenney, the Superintendent, to produce evidence of where the money is going.  Clearly in this video one can hear suspicions of cronyism and conflicts of interest.  Whether or not this is true remains to be seen.  One thing that is true is that the Board of Trustees in Fort Bend seems very reluctant to talk.  In previous public meetings regarding zoning, the board failed even to show up.  Which sends one message to the people of Fort Bend county, the board is saying "we're doing what we think is right, and we don't care what the rest of you think."  Given that T.E.A. has near zero oversight over local school boards, most school boards in Texas have no one to hold them accountable, except, of course, the voters.

Texas: Was Open For Business, Now Out To Lunch

House Budget Plan Would Cause Huge Job Losses, According to Official Estimate:  The House plan to cut $23 billion from the state budget, including $7.8 billion in school formula aid and more than another $1 billion in school grants, would have a devastating impact on employment and the economy in our state. That assessment comes not from outside critics of the House budget but from lawmakers' own expert in-house budget analysts at the Legislative Budget Board.

Sign the Petition to Keep the 22:1 Class Size

As class sizes grow, the quality of education for our children suffers. The current class-size limit of 22 students to one teacher in each classroom in grades K through 4 is under attack. Sign the petition below to support the class-size law.
http://action.aft.org/c/435/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=1208

Legislators Don't Cut Teachers, Administrators Do

Our classrooms are under assault.  Teacher layoffs across Texas.  It's not legislators doing this, it's school administrators.  Since 2004 Texas enrollment is up seven percent but the number of non-teachers is up twenty percent.  It's no surprise those same administrators want to fire teachers first.  That's insulting.  There's a better way.  Instead of firing teachers how about trimming outside the classroom?  We could save billions and save our classrooms.  Get the facts at Protect The Classroom dot com.

Teacher to Administration ratios Have Drastically Increased

Protect The Classroom!

If Texas’ 1,035 school districts were a single company, it would be the fifth largest employer… in the world!
Only half of public school employees are teachers.

Current Issues and Legislation with Texas State Funding for Education

New Move in Senate to Scrape up More Revenue: The San Antonio Express-News reports that action is afoot in the state Senate to find $5 billion in additional revenue to reduce proposed budget cuts for education and health care in 2012-2013. At the behest of Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, a subcommittee on "fiscal matters" to be named Monday will be chaired by Sen. Robert Duncan, Republican of Lubbock. Among items Duncan's panel reportedly will examine: possible sales of unused state lands and extracting more income from state investments such as the Permanent School Fund, the state's endowment for public education.

Fort Bend ISD Declares Financial Emergency - Again

     Financial emergency. That's what the Fort Bend board and Superintendent Tim Jenney are calling it now. So why call it an emergency? The answer is simple. In the 2009-2010 school year, hundreds of teachers were laid off from Fort Bend.

'Devastating' Cuts Aim at Disabled Texans

While this story is not directly related to education in Texas it makes a strong point about our priorities.  While we understand that cuts are necessary, we will never, ever be able to build Texas up by cutting its legs out from under it.  Why is Texas so apt to cut resources from its most vulnerable?  Our Special Education teachers work hard to transition students who are mentally handicapped into our society.  Private and public organizations that work to improve those citizens' quality of life, education, jobs and place in our society have lost funding year after year while Perry has been in office.  In this article, a Houston reporter from Fox News got it right.

'Devastating' Cuts Aim at Disabled Texans

HOUSTON - When it comes to providing for adults with intellectual disabilities, the Great State of Texas ain't so great. In fact, the well-earned reputation is "bottom of the American barrel".
These days, tax-averse, money-strapped state leaders propose to cut funding for this deeply dependent population as much as 50 percent. It’s a reduction that would firmly secure the rank of dead last in the nation.

Judge blocks Wisconsin collective-bargaining law

Judge blocks Wisconsin collective-bargaining law

Albright seeks to unseat incumbent Menendez on FBISD board.

Fort Bend Independent School District Board of Trustee At-Large Position 4 incumbent Daniel Menendez and Position 1 incumbent Susan Hohnbaum have filed for re-election in the May 14 election. Bruce Albright has announced his intention to run against Menendez.

Fox News Bashes Teachers, and One Teacher Responds

“We got blackboard, here it is, Wisconsin teachers make a salary of $51,000…Benefits $38,000 per year, that comes to a whopping 89,000 bucks, while the rest of us, all workers in the United States, union, non-union, etc., $38,000 is your average salary…there, $10,000 in benefits, a quarter of what you make, that you would make if you were a Wisconsin teacher, to 48 grand, almost half the amount. Yet collective bargaining says that is OK. That’s not anti-free market?” - Eric Bolling

“For years teachers unions have been clamoring to get parents and community members to reach into their pockets and pony up more cash to improve their children’s education.”- Steve Doocy

"Unions are convenient scapegoats whenever the economy goes into a tailspin. Republicans and corporate media have been so successful at demonizing unions, that only about 10 percent of Americans now belong to one, down from a third of the workforce in the 1950s. By focusing on unions, Republicans and the media shift attention away from how corporations run America, which is the real problem." - The Bend

Dear FOX News,

I am proud to say “I am a teacher.”  Despite all the bad press we teachers get I am proud of what I do.  Frankly,  I would do this job for peanuts.  You have portrayed us as selfish, greedy, part-time employees who whine about our job and make too much money, because after all we only work 9 months out of the year, and have great benefits.   I, with a Masters degree, make $48,000 a year.  I have three children that I pay over $1300 a month for their child care and I pay out of my salary over $600 per month for all those “free” benefits that you think I am getting.  So far this year my children have had two double ear infections, bronchitis, kidney problems with one of my twins that included an ER visit, CT scan and several other doctor visits.  It is only March and even with all my “free” benefits I have paid over $1000 in medical care, but hey, my benefits are free. Forget that last year my husband was struck with an illness that ran us over $3000 in medical bills.

Stewart: Fox News says teachers overpaid, but not Wall Street

These folks just want teachers to give back, because they believe that $50,000 a year in salary, plus medical and dental...benefits...are incredibly generous, bordering on avarice! And I imagine these same people will feel the same way about couples earning more than $250,000 a year being asked to allow the Bush tax cuts to expire so that they would have to pay a slightly higher Federal Income tax rate.

Federal Budget Cuts to Education Could Affect Texas

At the federal level, our government faces budget cuts similar to the ones Texas does. They too have a choice. They can cut education or protect it.

President Obama said this week that any budget that sacrifices a commitment to education is a budget that sacrifices our future:

"And I will not let it happen."

Here's why he's taking a stand:

Last Year's Riffs Caused Teacher Shortages in 2011

In the year of 2009-2010, hundreds of employees were given pink slips, asked to resign, forced to retire or otherwise convinced to leave Fort Bend ISD under the premise that FBISD needed to fix its budget problems.  The problem is that mistakes were made last year by Fort Bend human resources regarding whom to lay off and how many.  For example, many Special Education teachers were either riffed (let go due to reduction in force) or transferred because the district assessment was that there were far too many Special Ed. teachers compared to the number of students they had in classrooms.  Now in 2011 Special Education teachers are off of the potential riff list.  Why?  Because there is now a shortage of Special Education teachers.  This brings up a couple of questions.  One, can the teachers in Fort Bend ISD trust human resources to do a better job than it did last year?  Two, who will be sticking around to find out?

And now in 2011 there is an "incentive" to resign.  Ten percent of base pay will be paid to the employee if they are one of the first to resign.  Unless, of course, you are teaching in one of the critical need areas.  Question: Why are there critical need areas if FBISD was letting people go in those areas last year?  The critical need areas are high school Science, high school Math, foreign language or deaf education.

Clearly Fort Bend ISD human resources is in critical need of high school math skills as well.

22:1 Class sizes: Crowded classes mean limited learning.

As the Texas Senate Education Committee meets this morning to hear testimony in a public hearing on "unfunded mandates," thousands of teachers and parents are adding their voices to a call to "Keep the 22:1 Class-Size Law" amidst an attack on the law and other public education quality standards.
"Crowded classes mean limited learning, and that's something every teacher and parent understands intuitively," said Linda Bridges, Texas AFT President. "Lawmakers aren't fooling anyone by pretending that class size doesn’t matter. It does, and it's one of the most important education reforms passed in decades and has stood the test of time, study and plain old common sense."

The Texas state law enacted in 1984 establishes a class-size limit of 22 students to one teacher in public school grades K-4. However, the law includes a waiver provision that allows districts to exceed the limit when faced with financial hardship, shortages of facilities or teachers, unanticipated enrollment increases, or high levels of student mobility. The Texas Education Agency makes it easy to obtain waivers and has only denied five and granted more than 3,500.

Read more about the 22:1 class size and its effect on student learning here.

"If you already have thousands of waivers given out so that districts aren't hamstrung with added costs for a small number of kids over the cap, then why on earth do we need to permanently get rid of the law?" Bridges asked. "The class-size cap is a safeguard, one that gives parents notification that the cap has been exceeded. Would you want to show up to your child's second-grade class and find 28 kids and a teacher who is struggling to give them the attention and help they deserve?"

Bridges said thousands of teachers, parents and concerned citizens have signed a petition at www.22to1.org to keep the law. Additionally, some 1,500 took the extra step of submitting comments—many of them detailed and impassioned—on why the law is crucial to their children's success. Bridges added that several other public education quality standards are also at risk, including teacher contract rights which provide a minimal level of due process to prevent cronyism, discrimination or arbitrary dismissals. Also under review are state salary standards, the loss of which could lead to districts essentially nullifying state pay raises for teachers. "The issue of 'mandate relief' is simply a diversion and distraction from the real problem. In the 2011 session, the goal should indeed be to ease the financial squeeze on school districts--not by undercutting valuable reforms but taking a balanced approach to balancing the state budget and properly funding our schools," Bridges said.

Pflugerville ISD to consider layoffs

Meeting is open to parents

Updated: Tuesday, 08 Mar 2011, 3:30 PM CST
Published : Tuesday, 08 Mar 2011, 3:30 PM CST

PFLUGERVILLE, Texas (KXAN) - Pflugerville Independent School District parents can meet with school officials to discuss the school funding crisis Tuesday night.

The school district will have to reduce its budget by at least $20 million. PISD is considering laying off 100 or more employees.

School officials ask parents to come to the meeting to talk about the cutbacks.
The meeting is at Westview Middle School cafeteria at 7 p.m. The school is at 1805 Scofield Lane in Austin.

http://www.kxan.com/dpp/news/local/williamson/p%27ville-isd-to-consider-layoffs

Texas teacher layoffs could hamper some local economies

Texas teacher layoffs could hamper some local economies

Associated Press  March 6, 2011, 10:32AM

AUSTIN — 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 his vision of a budget balanced through cuts alone, 100,000 teachers could lose their jobs.
That's about a third of the 333,000 teachers employed by Texas public schools.
"In a small town, the school is the largest employer," said Deborah Ottmers, assistant superintendent for business and finance at the Fredericksburg school district. These proposed cuts would be "a huge hit on the economy in any town."
Plans for layoffs are stirring panic from Houston to far West Texas. And while the Legislature has until May to write a budget, districts can't wait to see what happens. The pink slips have already started in places such as Austin, Round Rock and Dallas.
Perry, meanwhile, keeps talking about jobs. Just not teaching jobs.

Read the entire article here:  http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/7459448.html

House Budget-Writers Vote to Use Part of Rainy Day Fund; Governor Says the Rest is Off the Table, Fiddling While Rome Burns; Senators Keep Looking for More Revenue

House Budget-Writers Vote to Use Part of Rainy Day Fund; Governor Says the Rest is Off the Table, Fiddling While Rome Burns; Senators Keep Looking for More Revenue

Today the Texas House Appropriations Committee made a small step toward common sense on the state budget, voting unanimously to spend $3.2 billion of the state’s Economic Stabilization Fund to cover a portion of the state’s huge revenue shortfall. The committee did so as Gov. Rick Perry, House Speaker Joe Straus, and state Comptroller Susan Combs issued a joint statement backing the move as a necessary one “to help our budget deal with the impact of the national recession” on state revenue for the current 2011 fiscal year.
However, Gov. Perry, having erased his original line in the sand against any use at all of this so-called Rainy Day Fund this session, immediately drew a new one concerning any further use of the fund, for the next two-year budget period. Said he: “I remain steadfastly committed to protecting the remaining balance of the Rainy Day Fund, and will not sign a 2012-2013 state budget that uses the Rainy Day Fund.”  The governor added that more than $6 billion remaining in the fund must not be used to address the current budget emergency but must be reserved instead “to cover unexpected emergencies in the future.” Speaker Straus also spoke of the need to “preserve” the fund.
But the limited use of the Rainy Day Fund these leaders endorsed today still leaves the state deep in a yawning hole for the coming 2012-2013 biennium—more than $23 billion in the hole, by generally accepted estimates. That reality prompted a sharp response to the governor from a leading advocate for a more balanced approach to balancing the state budget. Said Scott McCown, director of the Center for Public Policy Priorities:  “Governor Perry has things backwards. Texans aren’t supposed to protect the Rainy Day Fund. The Rainy Day Fund is supposed to protect Texans. Voters created the Rainy Day Fund by constitutional amendment in 1988 to offset unforeseen falls in state revenue just like the state faces in 2012-13. The Legislature and Governor should use the Rainy Day Fund to bridge the revenue hole created by the Great Recession.”

Thousands Of Texas Educators Protest Budget Cuts At Capitol

As spring break kicks off, thousands educators from around the state are hardly vacationing. Instead, they're protesting budget cuts at the state capitol.
A large rally Monday in Austin, organized in part by the American Federation of Teachers, arrived on the heels of another large protest on Saturday against a proposal to cut $10 billion in state education spending. Monday's rally drew about 4,000, according to local NBC station KXAN.
There were conflicting estimates for Saturday's protest attendance. The Associated Press, among other news outlets, reported about 5,000 people descended upon Austin, whereas local ABC station KTRK, among other news outlets, said the turnout was 11,000.
Amid Saturday's large crowd of protesters -- some carrying umbrellas to symbolize their request for lawmakers to dip into the Rainy Day Fund -- a middle schooler revved things up, local CBS station DFW reports.

"Because my teachers and people like you believe in me, and it rubs off on me."

Texas will have to plug a hole of up to $27 billion, a budget shortfall caused by the recession and a new business tax that hasn't raised the forecasted funds.

Gov. Perry: Not my fault if teachers are fired

In this article Governor Rick Perry is making it clear to the state of Texas:  He'll cut school budgets, not use the rainy day fund, but as for the hiring and firing?  "Don't look at me"

Gov. Perry: Not my fault if teachers are fired
By Peggy Fikac And Gary Scharrer, Houston Chronicle
Updated 12:24 p.m., Thursday, March 10, 2011

Gov. Rick Perry said Wednesday the state's not to blame if teachers lose their jobs as school districts grapple with the potential loss of billions of state dollars.

School groups took issue with Perry's effort to distance the state from the effects of budget cuts, which by one estimate could cost up to 100,000 school district jobs through the next two years.

"The lieutenant governor, the (Texas House) speaker, and their colleagues aren't going to hire or fire one teacher, best I can tell. That is a local decision that will be made at the local districts," Perry said when asked about a Texas Capitol rally planned Saturday by teachers, parents and others concerned about the potential cuts.

Families and small businesses across Texas "are making decisions about what's a priority," Perry said, "… and I think school districts are no different."

He said if he were deciding, he'd focus on "non-teaching" staff - which a number of school districts have said wouldn't suffice to meet the cuts.

"Let there be no mistake, the decisions being made in school districts across the state regarding staff layoffs are a direct result of state funding cuts proposed by lawmakers," an alliance of education groups said in a joint statement.

"We urge lawmakers to use a balanced approach in developing a state budget, including accessing the rainy day fund" state savings account, said the Texas Association of School Administrators, Texas Association of School Boards and Texas School Alliance.


Read more: http://www.beaumontenterprise.com/default/article/Gov-Perry-Not-my-fault-if-teachers-are-fired-1061543.php#ixzz1Gi14paOX