Fort Worth ISD will reduce budgets and cut staff as the district deals with several challenges. District Superintendent Dr. Angelica M. Ramsey cited an expected decline in enrollment, the failure of the Texas Legislature to increase public school funding, fewer federal dollars, and a projected budget deficit among the reasons behind the cuts. view article arw

Fort Bend ISD trustees heard a report Feb. 5 from district officials outlining a projected $132.6 million shortfall in its bond budget passed in the May 2023 election, estimating the projects could run about 11.8% over budget. Voters approved the district’s $1.26 billion bond package that included the $1.18 billion Proposition A, which provided funds for construction, security and other projects. However, preliminary construction costs are now outdated due to inflation and material and labor costs, district officials said at the Feb. 5 board workshop meeting. District officials have identified factors causing the shortfall and made plans to shore up the shortage, which will include monthly board updates. view article arw

Trustees at Keller Independent School District say they will be focusing the month of February on a new budget to dig the district out of a $28 million shortfall. Although the district is blaming the legislature for inadequate funding, Texas lawmakers allocated over $93.6 billion for government education in 2023, including several billion in new funding. However, during the board’s January 25 meeting, Keller ISD Superintendent Tracy Johnson said the legislature is not providing increased funding to fix the district’s budget deficit problem. “Our state could fix this problem today. They could call a fifth special session,” said Johnson. “But there is no talk, no hope of a fifth special session. So we’re gonna have to solve this problem ourselves.” view article arw

For most of the 2023 legislative year, public school advocates pushed for a $1,000 per-student increase in state funding, insisting the money was necessary to keep up with school districts’ rising costs. Teachers rallied at the Capitol, demanding more money for classrooms, salaries and student needs. In ongoing dissonance, Gov. Greg Abbott also spent the year praising the Legislature for investing in schools. The governor has said the Legislature can and has invested in public schools while at the same time supporting school choice, a controversial proposal that uses public money to pay for children’s private school tuition. view article arw

Thanks to the standoff at the Legislature between vouchers and school funding, and multiple related factors, the Brownsville Independent School District faces a best-case scenario $16 million deficit even before it begins drafting next year’s budget. The actual number depends on how much of the district’s $116 million fund balance the BISD Board of Trustees will allow interim Superintendent Jesus M. Chavez and his administration to use to craft the district’s 2024-2025 budget, and how many efficiencies the district can find. “The other part that makes it more complex for us is because of the property value study that the state does,” Chavez said in an interview earlier this week. “They randomly select areas, they don’t do the whole state. Cameron County was selected. The property values that came out were way higher than our local values. What the state tells you is, well, you should have corrected this much in local dollars, but because your appraisal value was lower, you didn’t correct that, but we’re not going to correct that. We’re taking away those dollars from you that you thought you were going to get,” he said. view article arw

The Canutillo Independent School District is making budget cuts, including layoffs, to address a nearly $6 million deficit caused in part because of the board’s decision to approve a budget that relied on hopes of an increase in state funding that never came. The layoffs, announced in mid-January, include eliminating 13 positions, five of which were vacant. The cuts saved the district $300,000, officials said. view article arw

Principal Katy Myers listened to the sounds of learning as she walked the hallways of Rufino Mendoza Elementary. In one classroom, students rolled dice and used small dry erase boards to practice subtraction. Down the hall, students performed jumping jacks to the beat of The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights” in the gym. Downstairs, students wrote a song based on a poem they just read. Welcome to Saturday school, a learning loss recovery program that Fort Worth ISD funded using $407.4 million in federal pandemic relief funds. Myers recently pulled academic progress data for the 63 students who attend Saturday classes, and children who attended most sessions are on track to meet their end-of-year growth goals, Myers said. “I know what we’re doing is working,” the principal said. view article arw

There’s a war underway for control of Texas public education. The war is being waged by Gov. Greg Abbott, and by his appointed head of the Texas Education Agency, Mike Morath. That battle is aimed at undermining a bedrock principle of democracy — that effective, well-funded public education is vital to a strong state and country. To participate effectively in a democracy, the public must have the intellectual tools to do so. For several generations, public education has provided those tools. Whatever you hear about the state’s new high school rating system, the heart of the matter is whether this state truly believes in public education or not. view article arw

Nacogdoches County public schools are appealing a decision that could lead to them collectively losing more than $1.5 million in special education reimbursements in the 2024-2025 school year. The change is the result of a 2017 audit of the Texas Department of Health and Human Services, which revealed that Texas was improperly requesting federal reimbursement for certain special education services through a Medicaid program. This change in funding places more financial burden on schools who are already underfunded due to a lack of education funding passed by the Texas Legislature in 2023, said Cushing ISD Superintendent Brandon Enos, whose school is projected to lose around $135,000. view article arw

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — In the past three months, nearly 200 more teachers have left Las Vegas valley classrooms, bringing the current total of teacher vacancies in the Clark County School District to 1,341. The new contract for Clark County teachers is supposed to help address the increasing educator shortage, but how the district is finding new teachers, where they're traveling to recruit them, and how much that costs has been controversial. view article arw

It's been talked about for a while, and now Texas school districts are faced with making cuts because lawmakers did not increase school funding or teachers' pay as they battled over education savings accounts for parents. This comes as sources tell FOX 4 Gov. Greg Abbott may consider calling lawmakers back soon. view article arw

Saddle up for a celebration of Western heritage and culture that will benefit local school programs at the inaugural Rodeo Celina. Tickets are now on sale for the rodeo event held May 31 and June 1-2, according to a Jan. 23 news release. Hosted by the Greater Celina Chamber Foundation, the event will be held at Southfork Ranch in Parker. Rodeo Celina is sanctioned by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. view article arw

The Texas Legislature did not increase funding for public schools during this legislative session. Now, some school districts like Keller ISD are being forced to make big budget cuts. The Keller Independent School District in Tarrant County is facing a budget shortfall of more than $27 million. view article arw

Lake Travis ISD officials have expressed frustration over a lack of state funding as the district is projecting an over $3.8 million budget shortfall for next year. Current situation LTISD is projected to adopt an $3.86 million shortfall in its general operating fund budget for the 2024-25 fiscal year, according to a preliminary budget presented at a Jan. 17 board of trustees meeting. The preliminary budget includes about $163.9 million in expenditures and $160 million in revenues, assuming the district enrolls 42 more students and sees an 8% increase in property values. The shortfall comes as the district is expected to pay over $50 million in recapture, a $3.6 million increase from last school year, said Pam Sanchez, LTISD assistant superintendent for business services. The district will need to carefully watch its fund balance as it is projected to decrease over the next couple of years, she said. view article arw

South San ISD’s school board voted to give the superintendent the power to lay off employees due to the district’s $12 million deficit. The district has about 1,200 employees and needs to reduce 20 positions. view article arw

Gov. Greg Abbott has declared war on 16 rural Republicans who helped crush his school vouchers proposal. By doing so, he has also taken on 16 rural communities that affirm vouchers will destroy their already struggling public school system. “It astonishes me how so many Texans are against vouchers, but our Governor, Lt. Governor, and Senate are more worried about appeasing their wealthy campaign donors who want vouchers for obvious reasons,” Chad Gee, Superintendent of Kennedale ISD, told RA News. “So much for what the public wants as opposed to the wealthy and politically connected. The House is trying to fight for the public sector and not the private sector.” Abbott raised a record $19 million over the last six months – money he intends to use towards ousting anti-school voucher House Republicans. His campaign manager Kim Synder said in a statement view article arw

According to Loomis, AISD is still operating on the same budget as in 2016, which doesn’t account for the drastic inflation that has swept the country. Added to that fact, the population in Potter County has decreased, especially in school-age children, according to facts presented at the meeting.  Many local schools have only 300 students when 500-600 is needed to be at maximum efficiency. Additionally, most Amarillo schools were built in the 1940s – 1950s, making schools 70 years old. So, the question arises over whether to consolidate two schools into one or tear them down and rebuilt. view article arw

Lufkin school board has approved a resolution regarding an early resignation notice incentive pay plan for the rest of the school year. This decision was made at Thursday’s regular board meeting to help the district get ahead of the teacher shortage. According to Lufkin ISD assistant superintendent of administrative services Daniel Spikes, “anything that we can do to try to get out in front of the issue will be a benefit not only to us as a district, but to our students in the classroom.” view article arw

In its first budget workshop of the year, Denton ISD leaders said they are planning for better days in terms of school funding. But if the state lawmakers opt out of a special session to pass a bill to meet inflation and the costs associated with growth? Denton ISD will have to make cuts. Superintendent Jamie Wilson told the school board Tuesday that the administration is going into budget planning with a sense of informed optimism. A key point of light: The district will head into the 2024-25 school year with a plan to increase staff pay. view article arw

Texas will lose millions of dollars in annual funding for special education, following a ruling in a legal fight about a billing disagreement between school districts and the federal government. Two of the ones expected to take the biggest hits? CyFair ISD and Houston ISD. Parents and advocates expressed concern about how the loss in funding will impact what they called an already-strained special education system in Texas. They said state lawmakers have had an opportunity to increase funding for students with special needs, and they are frustrated that it hasn't been done. view article arw

Texas school districts are poised to lose more than $300 million a year in special education funding under a recent federal administrative decision, at a time when many districts are struggling to keep up with an exploding number of requests for evaluations. Dozens of districts stand to lose at least $1 million in the coming school year, and three will face shortfalls of more than $10 million: Northside ISD in San Antonio, Dallas ISD and Cypress-Fairbanks ISD, northwest of Houston. Houston ISD will also lose out on close to $10 million, according to data from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission.  view article arw

A historic $683 million investment in community colleges rewards schools for getting students to complete a degree or certificate, transfer to a four-year university or participate in college courses as early as high school.  Texas’ new method for funding community colleges could position two-year, public institutions as major players in training students on skills employers say are missing in the state’s labor force.  House Bill 8’s historic $683 million investment in community colleges rewards schools for getting students to complete a degree or certificate, transfer to a four-year university or participate in college courses as early as high school.  HB 8 passed with a near unanimous vote, a contrast to the political polarization that surrounded higher education in 2023 through contentious legislative battles over professors’ tenure and diversity, equity and inclusion offices.  Proponents of the new funding formula believe it will help community college students and the state economy as a growing number of high-demand, self-sustaining jobs in Texas require credentials beyond a high school diploma. view article arw

A new report reveals undisclosed funding into Texas A&M has resulted in full Qatari ownership of over 500 research projects.  A new bombshell report reveals Texas A&M University’s partnership with the government of Qatar could be a major threat to national security.   Since 2003 Texas A&M has operated a branch in the middle eastern country of Qatar, which was set up through an agreement between Texas A&M and the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science, and Community Development, which has close links to the Qatar royal family.  Now, a report from the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy reveals Qatar’s undisclosed funding into Texas A&M has resulted in full Qatari ownership of over 500 research projects. view article arw

Texas’ new method for funding community colleges could position two-year, public institutions as major players in training students on skills employers say are missing in the state’s labor force. House Bill 8’s historic $683 million investment in community colleges rewards schools for getting students to complete a degree or certificate, transfer to a four-year university or participate in college courses as early as high school. HB 8 passed with a near unanimous vote, a contrast to the political polarization that surrounded higher education in 2023 through contentious legislative battles over professors’ tenure and diversity, equity and inclusion offices. Proponents of the new funding formula believe it will help community college students and the state economy as a growing number of high-demand, self-sustaining jobs in Texas require credentials beyond a high school diploma. view article arw

Round Rock ISD board members on June 17 adopted a $467.42 million general operating budget for fiscal year 2021-22. The general operating fund budget includes $444.53 million in revenues and $467.42 million in expenses, creating a deficit in this fund of $17.2 million, RRISD Chief Financial Officer Kenneth Adix said. view article arw

State lawmakers were prepared for a budget crunch, since the COVID-19 pandemic slashed revenues from sales taxes, energy taxes, and other sources. The question they now face is how to close the shortfall without choking off long-term growth.  The answer is far from clear, but it’s certain to involve cuts to popular programs.  In fact, such cuts are what's expected this session. The state comptroller's office says lawmakers need to close a shortfall of nearly $1 billion in revenues. And Republican state Sen. Brandon Creighton of Conroe, who serves on the Senate Finance Committee, noted that Gov. Greg Abbott has asked state agencies to reduce budgets by 5%. view article arw

Bryan ISD's Board of Trustees have approved a one-time $500 supplement for their salaried employees. Teachers, counselors, librarians, nurses, administrators and professional staff receive their pay bonus on their Dec 15 paycheck. view article arw

Texas pre-K programs are just scraping by after losing millions of dollars last year — and without sustainable funding, they could see greater problems down the line, school officials say. During the 2017 legislative session, lawmakers decided not to fund a $118 million high-quality pre-K grant program that was created in 2015 and championed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott. The money had gone to 573 districts and charter schools that pledged to meet measures such as setting a lower student-teacher ratio, avoiding Common Core curricula and reporting student progress to the state. view article arw

Burnet school district officials were probably expecting to get more than two years from the synthetic turf installed at Bulldog Field in 2015, but that didn’t happen and it’s now set the district back $150,000. Burnet Consolidated Independent School District Superintendent Keith McBurnett, however, said the district is looking to get $105,000 back from one manufacturer. Last year, officials noticed some turf fibers sticking up higher than others, so they took a closer look, McBurnett said. “To most people, it probably wasn’t noticeable,” he said. “We had all the experts look at the field, and they looked at the backside. It needed to be replaced.” view article arw

On Saturday, voters who live within the Houston ISD will go to the polls to determine how - or if - the district will pay the state millions in "recapture" fees. Whatever voters decide on Proposition 1, the Houston ISD will take a financial hit, officials say. Recapture, and school finance, can be difficult to grasp. To help, here are the answers to some questions about the ballot measure. view article arw

The Round Rock school district awarded $1.9 million in grants to 34 campuses to help foster innovation in schools through programs, models or initiatives that enrich learning. The grants range from $7,500 to $100,000 and support the district’s strategic goal of implementing, enhancing and reinforcing innovative teachings and learning models, according to a district news release. view article arw

Fort Bend ISD is going to begin serving up something different for some students who continually fail to pay for their lunches -- a cold cheese sandwich with a side of milk, and that's not sitting well with some parents. We're not talking about students who qualify for free school meals. But apparently, these repeat offenders have gotten so "forgetful" that it's draining the district's budget by hundreds of thousands of dollars. view article arw

The Garland school district’s $453.8 million budget for 2015-16 passed this week. Here are the highlights: Taxes are going up: There’s a 10-cent per $100 valuation tax increase tied to theNovember 2014 passage of a $455 million bond package. Garland ISD previously had the second-lowest tax rate among 16 districts that tax in Dallas County; the bond will bring that closer to the midpoint. view article arw

The Lampasas Independent School District met Monday to discuss the district’s fiscal year 2016 budget and proposed tax rates. “My idea was still to give everyone a tax break, but to make it 1 cent right now, and we could change it in a year if we need to,” board member Sam Walker said. “I think we are jumping the gun by dropping it 2 cents.” view article arw

Marfa ISD is taking a proactive approach toward its potential Chapter 41 status, which would classify the district as a “rich” school. Chief Financial Officer Victoria Sanchez discussed with the board of trustees at the June 15 meeting five different options they could possibly choose for the Chapter 41 status and heavily stressed that the board should consider each option carefully as three of them would have permanent repercussions. view article arw