Texas teachers, child care workers now eligible for COVID-19 vaccine
The change in eligibility comes the day after the Biden administration urged all states to prioritize teachers. Full Story
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![Teachers ensure students have their masks on correctly on the first day of in-person classes at Highland Village Elementary on Sept. 8, 2020.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
In San Antonio, teachers hit the streets in search of students disappearing from online learning
Every few weeks, teams of teachers from one middle school knock on doors looking for students who have disengaged with online classes. It seems to work. Full Story
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![Teachers from Rawlinson Middle School in San Antonio go door to door to find students who have stopped logging in for class during the COVID-19 pandemic. They knock until someone answers, and talk to sleepy kids and overwhelmed parents about how to stay engaged during remote learning.]()
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Caught by surprise, Texas education officials unsure how end of mask mandate will affect schools
Some superintendents say they will continue requiring students and staff to wear masks as they await further guidance from the Texas Education Agency. Full Story
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![A mask hangs from Declan True's protective barrier set on his desk on the first day of in-person classes at Highland Village Elementary. Sept. 8, 2021.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Pandemic response tops Texas voters’ legislative priorities, poll finds
Texas voters also think the state spends too little on mental health, and public education, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll. Full Story
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![The Senate Floor on Jan. 13, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas schools still tallying storm costs, and some won't reopen soon
School districts report flooded classrooms and gyms, and teachers have lost supplies and learning materials. The damage is further disrupting a school year already upended by the pandemic. Full Story
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![Cots and bags with items at Reilly Elementary School in North Austin. The school was turned into a warming shelter during the recent winter storm. Feb. 18, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
We’ve updated our Texas Public Schools Explorer with 2019-20 data
Use our database to learn about Texas public school districts and campuses, including hundreds of charter schools and alternative campuses. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the state waived accountability ratings for the 2019-20 school year. Full Story
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![Students draw their self-portraits, including their masks, in Mrs. Hogan's kindergarten class on the first day of in-person classes at Highland Village Elementary on Sept. 8, 2020.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Texas students slammed again as storm scrambles already chaotic school year
The pandemic had already destabilized parents, teachers and students. Now the winter storm's damage to buildings is preventing schools from even serving as lifelines for students in need of shelter and food. Full Story
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![Frozen jackets sit on a bench at an elementary school in San Marcos as Texas continues to deal with sub-zero temperatures and widespread power and water outages on Feb. 17, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Many Texas students can skip STAAR tests this year, but high schoolers might have to show up to graduate
There will be few consequences if parents worried about the health risks of in-person testing keep their elementary and middle school students in virtual learning at home. But high schoolers still must pass certain exams to graduate. Full Story
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![Hank Warner teaches a pre-advanced placement algebra course for ninth graders at Bowie High School in Austin.]()
Credit: Tamir Kalifa for The Texas Tribune -
Watch: State Rep. Harold Dutton, chair of public education committee, discusses how Legislature should respond to pandemic, winter storm
Dutton joined The Texas Tribune on Thursday for a conversation moderated by Aliyya Swaby, the Tribune's public education reporter. Full Story
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Watch: Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath on educating students during a pandemic
Morath spoke with The Texas Tribune about on-campus and virtual instruction, school funding and the STAAR exam. Full Story
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Speaker Dade Phelan shakes up Texas House leadership with new chairs on key committees
With assignments out, legislation that has been filed can be referred to committees for potential hearings. The committees overseeing public education, budget writing and redistricting are among those with new chairs. Full Story
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![A committee hearing room featuring plexiglass dividers on Jan 4, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
There aren't enough substitute teachers to step in when coronavirus keeps Texas teachers out of the classroom
Administrators, school staff and uncredentialed stand-ins are being sent into classrooms to cover for teachers who fall ill or have to isolate. But even those improvisations aren't keeping classrooms fully staffed. Full Story
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![Students in Mrs. Cazares' third-grade class on the first day of in-person classes at Highland Village Elementary on Sept. 8, 2020.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Republicans want to keep transgender women out of women’s school sports teams
Lawmakers have filed legislation that would ban transgender girls and women who attend public K-12 schools, colleges and universities from playing on single-sex sports teams designated for girls and women. Full Story
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![A basketball game at a high school.]()
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Texas will require students to take the STAAR test in person
School districts can set up sites outside of their schools, including performing arts centers, hotels and recreation centers where they can “ensure equitable access and maintain test security.” Full Story
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![A student in a classroom at Cactus Elementary School.]()
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Texas prepares to test for lead in schools’ drinking water for the first time
An updated EPA rule requires drinking water in elementary schools be tested for lead and copper — a mandate that emerged from the Flint, Michigan, water crisis. Full Story
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![Water fountains at Northside ISD in San Antonio on Aug. 11, 2020.]()
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Point of Order: Funding Texas schools during a pandemic
In the latest episode of our podcast about the Texas Legislature, Evan Smith talks to state Sen. Larry Taylor, chair of the Senate Education Committee, about whether it’s possible to fully fund last session's school finance bill, learning loss, broadband access, the STAAR test and more. Full Story
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Point of Order: The Queen’s Gambit
In this episode of our podcast about the Texas Legislature, recorded on Jan. 15, 2021, Evan Smith interviews 25-term state Rep. Senfronia Thompson about COVID-19, race, public ed and that whippersnapper Dade Phelan. Full Story
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Texas schools are wary of losing funding gains lawmakers provided in 2019
A school finance bill in 2019 boosted funding for districts, but the pandemic has since added layers of financial uncertainty. Full Story
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![Student Kaison Hockenbarger and Ms. Abigail Boyett go over his answers to a multiplication assignment in Schoology. Schoology is an online portal and virtual learning hub, students, parents and teachers use to access assignments and communicate with their teachers outside of their classrooms.]()
Credit: Alejandra Casas for The Texas Tribune -
Jordan’s story: Isolated, anxious and failing online classes, an 11-year-old Texas boy considered suicide
Months of remote learning were hard on the Frisco ISD student. Like other schoolchildren across the state, he experienced mental health issues, in large part due to social isolation during the pandemic. Full Story
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![Chairs are stacked on tables in a classroom at Judson High School in Converse on Aug. 11, 2020.]()
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Where parents and students in Texas can turn for help with mental health concerns
Reports of depression, anxiety and thoughts of suicide among Texas students are rising as the pandemic drags on. Here is a resource guide for those seeking help. Full Story
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![A Texas elementary school student works on a laptop.]()
Credit: Erich Schlegel for USA Today Network via REUTERS