 2017 State Board of Education
Revised high school English language arts and reading
curriculum standards and English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL)
curriculum standards won final approval from State Board of Education members June 23 on a
13-0 vote.
The new high school
TEKS will be implemented in the 2020-2021 school year.
Five charter applicants approved by Commissioner of Education Mike
Morath won the endorsement of the State Board of Education in June. The new
charters are located in Houston, Dallas and Austin.
The revised science Texas Essential Knowledge and
Skills for kindergarten through twelfth grade, which were approved by the board
in April, are now posted. Unlike the recently approved language arts and reading
standards which underwent major restructuring and
revisions, the science TEKS were streamlined or reduced. The streamlining was
done in response to concerns that it was difficult to teach all the grade-level
standards during a standard school year.
The State Board of Education has begun establishing
the membership of the 18-member Long-Range Plan Steering Committee. A public nomination
period will open soon. This committee will help the board establish goals for
public education for the next five to seven years. Community meetings and a
statewide survey will also help inform the crafting of these goals.
More than 1,000 bills were filed during the 85th
Texas Legislature that impacted the public schools, the Texas Education Agency or
their employees. Ultimately about 40 of those bills became law. Two of the most
high profile bills made major revisions to the A-F accountability system and
increased reporting requirements related to inappropriate student-teacher
relationships. We summarize a sampling of the new laws for you.
On July 18, lawmakers return for a special session in which at least four
education issues are expected to be discussed. Later this summer, the Texas
Education Agency will issue a briefing book containing details about each of
the bills passed.
A summary of action taken at the June 23 State Board of
Education general meeting is posted at http://tea.texas.gov/sboe/actions/.
 Cooper Philpot of Arlington ISD was one of 15 Student Heroes.
The
State Board of Education recently honored 15 public school students as 2017
Student Heroes for exhibiting caring and compassionate assistance to people in
their schools and communities. Some of their activities included tutoring,
preparing bags of essential items for foster care children, creating a drum
line, assisting students with disabilities and hosting birthday parties for
homeless children.
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David
Bradley, one of the State Board of Education’s most tenured members, announced
in June that he will not seek re-election in 2018.
Bradley, who represents Southeast
Texas, was first elected to the board in 1996 and has been re-elected six times.
Bradley earned a reputation as a strong protector of the $35 billion Permanent School Fund and as a charter school advocate.
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 Board Chair Donna Bahorich, left, and SBOE member Tom Maynard, right, present a resolution to FCCLA leader Sharon Pierce
The State of Education passed a resolution honoring
Sharon Pierce, the long-time director of the Texas Association of Family Career
and Community Leaders of America. Pierce, who retired in June, worked in the
education field for 42 years, including 36 as the state leader for the Family
Career and Community Leaders of America. Pierce also recently was named the
FCCLA state advisor of the Year.
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