2021年6月21日:政府. signals more legislation on race curriculum; Local unions win pay raises; Take action to stop charter expansion

Seven new charter applications have been approved by the commissioner of education 和 are up for final approval or veto by the elected State Board of Education this week. It’s important to remember that once a charter is approved 和 meets certain minimal TEA requirements, it can apply to TEA to open an unlimited number of new campuses anywhere in the state. 德州尾 will be there Tuesday to testify against the further expansion of unaccountable charter schools. One of our union’s priorities is stopping the expansion of charter schools in Texas. 为什么? They foster inequality, lack accountability, 和 gobble up $3.60亿年 每年的资助金额 这应该属于我们的公共教育系统. Profit drives their expansion; not a sincere dedication to educating kids.

双重教育系统是不可持续的. 这必须由州教育委员会来解决, the only elected oversight there is for charter schools in Texas.

请帮助通过写信给您的SBOE会员 to say that more unaccountable charter schools are not welcome in Texas. We need to protect our neighborhood public schools from San Antonio to Houston, 从格兰德山谷到埃尔帕索.

特许学校在德州最高法院败诉

上周，德克萨斯州最高法院 奥德赛2020学院公司. v. 加尔维斯顿县评估区 ruled that a charter school could not claim a tax exemption for its leased property. 法院说, “The Constitution does not authorize an exemption for leased property that is privately owned but deemed public by statute,以及“公共实体必须真正拥有该财产。.法院补充道, “if the 立法机关 wants to exempt a property owner who leases to a charter school, 它可以修改德州宪法.”

During the regular legislative session, charter advocates barely passed a heavily amended HB 3610, mustering 65 votes of the 150-member Texas House 和 facing sharp bipartisan opposition in the House 和 Senate. The bill provides a property tax exemption for public school leases. Pro-public education advocates warned that the bill was unconstitutional, 和 even the bill’s fiscal note clearly warned that the bill needed a constitutional amendment (which needs two-thirds approval of all members of each house). With the Texas Supreme Court’s ruling declaring that these private-property charter leases need a constitutional amendment to effectuate an exemption from property taxes, it is clear that HB 3610 is expressly unconstitutional 和 cannot take effect.

 

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艾伯特:“必须做更多的事情”来禁止批判种族理论
政府. 他说，他将把这个问题列入特别会议

好像 HB 3979 还不够糟糕，州长. Greg 阿伯特 announced last week that he will add the bill’s topic—bans on controversial subjects, 尤其是关于种族歧视的, from being taught in the classroom—to an impending special session. That signal came as the governor nevertheless signed the bill 和 released a statement that said: “House Bill 3979 is a strong move to abolish critical race theory in Texas, 但还有更多的工作要做. 这个问题将被列入特别会议议程.”

HB 3979 had a long, strange trip through the 立法机关 this spring. In its original form it was presented as a civics bill that required the teaching of several writings foundational to the birth of the United States. But other language in the bill addressing controversial topics over race made it immediately clear that the legislation was intended to be a ban on teaching Critical Race Theory (CRT) 和 the 1619 Project—which a wave of Republican-controlled legislatures across the country have been trying to ban in the past couple of months. While the Critical Race theory mainly explores the intersection of the law 和 race, 和 the 1619 Project essays highlight little-known issues around 奴隶制, they nonetheless have become a target for conservative activists around the country.

现在政府. 阿伯特 has joined the fray 和 likely intends to try 和 pass legislation that is more implicit in banning CRT 和 the 1619 Project, while also cutting out a series of additions for required curriculum that Democrats added to the bill with amendments—such as writings on civil rights, 奴隶制, 印第安人, 墨西哥裔美国人, 还有劳工运动. (参议院, 在会议结束时面临紧迫的最后期限, 被迫通过众议院版本的法案.)

With a law that already stifles freedom of speech 和 any well-nuanced instruction on the role of racism 和 奴隶制 in our country’s founding, it’s concerning that the governor wants to push the agenda of white-washing our history even further. 德州尾 values the professionalism of our teachers to be free to present accurate 和 balanced information when teaching controversial subjects. We will be ready to fight this legislation when it surfaces in a special session, 具体日期还没有宣布.

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州长否决了立法机构的拨款，把州 员工薪酬面临风险

In a retaliatory move against lawmakers who failed to pass his priority voter suppression bill, 政府. 阿伯特 on Friday vetoed the section of the state budget that funds the 立法机关. 阿伯特 had threatened the veto after Democratic House members walked out 和 broke quorum to kill the elections bill, SB 7，在会议结束时.

阿伯特’s veto means thous和s of lawmaker staffers 和 hundreds of other state employees who support the legislative process could lose their pay after September 1. 然而, the situation could be resolved with action by the 立法机关 if—as the governor has indicated—it will meet in special session to address the voter suppression bill 和 other legislation supported by the governor that failed to pass this spring.

House Democratic Caucus Chair Chris Turner of Gr和 Prairie released a statement calling the governor’s action an “abuse of power,他发誓要反击这一举动. “德州有州长，不是独裁者. The tyrannical veto of the legislative branch is the latest indication that [阿伯特] is simply out of control.”

 

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Local unions successful in winning pay raises, retention bonuses

Unlike 2019’s state legislation that sent new money to school districts for required pay increases, local school boards are responsible for all compensation changes.

Our local unions have been working on campaigns for the past two months pushing for higher pay for all school employees. Here’s a list of recent successes 和 some ongoing action campaigns to help push for a win.

麦卡伦船尾的 campaign for raises was successful, as McAllen ISD met most of the compensation plan proposed. 工会赢得了2分.全体员工加薪5%, 一次性3美元,所有全职员工的留任奖金为10000, 暑期学校教师每小时收费50美元.

联盟/尾 won a huge victory this past week as the Dallas ISD trustees approved the increase of the district-wide minimum wage to $13.每小时50. 联盟/尾 plans to continue to bring the fight for their additional dem和s through June 24, when the trustees vote to approve the budget final for the 2021-2022 school year. 工会鼓励其成员这样做 写信 让受托人批准整个工会计划.

休斯敦教师联合会 successfully lobbied the Houston ISD school board to approve a $2,500 raise for teachers 和 staff on the teacher pay scale 和 a $500 retention bonus for all employees who return to HISD in September.

Although this was a huge win for HFT teachers, support staff were left out of this pay increase. Therefore, the union will continue its fight to win raises for support staff. 他们鼓励他们的成员 写信 to trustees asking them to pass a pay raise for 助教, 职员, 每小时的支持人员.

东北休斯顿尾 won major victories in two of the school districts they represent, Galena Park ISD 和 Sheldon ISD. School boards in both ISDs approved a 3% pay raise for teachers 和 support staff.

豪华版的尾部 will be advocating for an essential 2% pay increase 和 an additional $1,500 for teachers 和 support staff in Aldine ISD at the recommendation of their surveyed members. 他们鼓励他们的成员 写信 to Aldine ISD trustees asking them to approve their dem和s.

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事件

Register for Together Educating America’s Children (TEACH),

TEACH 2021 will will be held virtually this year on July 6-10 和 will feature:

• 在关键问题上鼓舞人心的演讲者, like rebuilding academically from the p和emic 和 creating anti-racist communities
• Engaging cross-curricular sessions with meaningful tools 和 resources to use in your school
• Solutions to ensure students’ social emotional learning 和 the freedom to thrive
• 与同事合作的机会

现在注册! 您也可以加入 TEACH 2021社区分享我的教训 审查2019年以后的会议内容, 找到相关资源, 和 join the discussion about what you hope to see at TEACH 2021.

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Bridges Institute for 专业发展: upcoming webinars

Differentiating Instruction: Principles of Successful Classrooms for Academically Diverse Learners

6月23日，10日.m.中午

This session is designed to raise awareness of research that supports differentiation 和 to teach the basic components of differentiation. The goal of the session is to help teachers reflect on the strengths of their current instructional practices 和 opportunities for further growth in teaching academically diverse students effectively. 注册在这里.

文化反应教育学

6月30日，10日.m.中午

In this session participants will operationalize the connection between culture 和 cognition, 设计以力量为重点的课程和活动, 和 implement research-based pedagogy in classrooms with ethnically diverse students. 注册在这里.

 

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