House Committee Passes ‘Texas Two Step’ of Vouchers and Public Ed Funding
Dems could do little but sound the alarm on vouchers—and warn the $7.7-billion school-finance package is still not enough.
Josephine Lee
Josephine Lee is a staff writer at the Texas Observer. She has previously worked as an educator and community organizer. Her reporting on labor, environment, politics, and education has been featured in Salon, The Daily Beast, Truthout, and other outlets. She was raised and lives in Houston.
Articles by Josephine Lee
‘We’re Not Just Some Bureaucrats’: DOE Employees on How Their Work Helps Texas Students
Department of Education workers and union leaders in Texas say kids will pay the price for Trump’s decision to “break this system.”
These Librarians Won’t Let America’s Fever Hit Fahrenheit 451
A new documentary shows us our local guardians of intellectual freedom in battle.
Marathon Hearing on School Vouchers Features Intense Bipartisan Opposition
“There is a disconnect between the rhetoric and what the bill actually says,” Democrat James Talarico summarized of House Bill 3.
How Voucher Vendors Could Make Millions from ‘School Choice’ in Texas
The Legislature’s current proposals put a handful of private contractors in the driver’s seat. Other states have already seen problems.
Did Mike Miles’ Former Charter School Network Fail to Provide Required Classes?
A Third Future Schools-Texas elementary school in Midland has been accused of neglecting social studies and physical education.
Public Education Bills: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Conservative state lawmakers have filed hundreds of bills targeting the school finance system, LGBTQ+ students, undocumented immigrant children, and more.
TEA Exoneration of Mike Miles’ Charter Schools Leaves Questions Unanswered, Raises New Ones
An agency report challenging media stories overlooks the charter schools’ compliance with federal tax and state business laws, on the watch of the now-HISD superintendent, while revealing new out-of-state payments.
What Trump 2.0 Could Mean for Public Education
Houston native and education expert Diane Ravitch urges a fight for "the future of Texas, and for the future of the children" under Trump's proposed reforms.
Texas’ Hotbed of Taiwanese Nationalism
For decades, Houston families like mine have helped keep the flame of independence burning.