Since 1954
Josephine Lee is a staff writer at the Texas Observer covering education and labor. She has previously worked as an educator and community organizer. Her reporting has been featured in Salon, The Daily Beast, Truthout, and other outlets. She was raised and lives in Houston.
“In my 33 years as an educator, I’ve never known teachers to come out against a bond. I’ve never seen so much community involvement and participation, mainly because we do not trust Mike Miles.”
Abbott-induced financial crises in public school districts are at the center of key legislative elections in Bexar County and beyond.
The private firms who have operated the tollway will be paid $1.7 billion by TxDOT, adding to the profit they’ve already made in toll revenues, construction contracts, and sales of shares.
U.S. Representative Greg Casar discusses the timing and impact of a new federal workplace heat safety rule.
During the power outage following the storm, a shocking lack of support in vulnerable communities reflected a larger breakdown in coordination between the state, CenterPoint Energy, and local governments.
An Observer investigation has found irregularities in how the Houston ISD superintendent's Colorado charter school nonprofit did business in Texas.
Punishments, injuries, and deaths—including from heat—on TDCJ farms are more hidden than they were in the years following convict leasing.
Sam Collins, better known as Professor Juneteenth, says his work to educate Americans about the holiday’s legacy is unfinished.
Two community organizers-turned-candidates see their wins as a progressive blueprint for taking on the establishment and mobilizing the Democratic base.
The ER nurse and community organizer wants to bring “the Capitol to the people and the people to the Capitol.”