The latest public education news from The Texas Tribune.
Harris County elected a Democratic district attorney, Houston ISD voters thumbed their noses at the Texas school finance system and Austin voters backed a $720 million transportation bond. Full Story
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State Board of Education member David Bradley is getting flak for refusing to release private emails related to board activity during an open records request. Full Story
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Some elections are referendums on issues, public votes that give lawmakers a good idea of what voters want. This election isn't one of those. Full Story
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Longtime GOP political operative John Colyandro has been tapped to head a new organization that will aggressively push Texas lawmakers to approve education savings accounts. Full Story
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Texas teachers are finding plenty of lessons for students in the 2016 presidential election, but discussing some of the racier news requires a careful approach. Full Story
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The Texas Education Agency denied allegations that it capped special education services for public school students at 8.5 percent in a letter sent to the U.S. Department of Education. Full Story
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The Texas Education Agency told 11 school boards and superintendents they must take special training because their plans for fixing underperforming schools haven't made the grade. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott turned down Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick's suggestion that he call a special session to overhaul school funding. Full Story
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Results released Thursday from a national science test show Texas students scoring higher than they have in past years, and higher than the national average. Full Story
In this week's edition of the Trib+Edu newsletter: The high school graduation rate hits a record high, a warning about a type of retirement plan used by many teachers and an interview with Micheal Sandbank of the University of Texas at Austin’s College of Education. Full Story
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State lawmakers complain that local property taxes need to be leashed. But state lawmakers are more responsible for the increases than they let on. Full Story
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Several Democrats aiming to unseat incumbent Republicans believe the relative unpopularity of the Republican at the top of the ticket, Donald Trump, will help propel them to victory in the Nov. 8 general election. Full Story
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State officials would like to lower local school property taxes, but they've got a secret: Some of those local school tax revenues make it easier to balance a tight state budget. Full Story
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Students in Mesquite and El Paso schools were sent to truancy court despite a new state law stressing alternatives to criminal charges, several advocacy groups allege. Full Story
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In a bipartisan sparring match, members of the House Public Education Committee challenged proponents of using taxpayer dollars — or tax breaks — to help parents send their kids to private or parochial schools. Full Story
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The Texas Education Agency has dismissed a complaint alleging that Harmony Public Schools engaged in financial malfeasance and other misconduct. Full Story
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In this week's edition of the Trib+Edu newsletter: A new audit finds charters and their management organizations pose risks to federal funds, schools address clown threats and an interview with Noah De Lissovoy of the University of Texas at Austin’s College of Education. Full Story
Faced with growing state attention on improper student-teacher relationships, the Texas Education Agency is asking lawmakers for hundreds of thousands of additional dollars to help investigate them — plus new legislation. Full Story
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In this week's edition of the Trib+Edu newsletter: A divisive political climate complicates efforts to teach about the elections, an Alabama school requires a background check before having lunch with a child and an interview with Anthony Brown and Louis Harrison of the University of Texas at Austin. Full Story
Texas House budget and public education leaders said Wednesday that the best way to overhaul the state’s school finance system is to increase the base amount of money it gives to each district per student. Full Story
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