Texas House adds MLK and Frederick Douglass speeches to bill that would mandate teaching โinformed American patriotismโ
House Bill 4509 would mandate that students study documents such as the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Federalist Papers. The bill's author added speeches from Black historical figures after criticism at a hearing last month.
Texas directs vaccine providers to begin giving shots to teachers, child care workers
HOUSTON โ Texas health officials have directed all coronavirus vaccine providers to immediately expand eligibility to K-12 and preschool teachers and staff, as well as child care workers. โItโs just simply great news,โ said Zeph Capo, president of the Texas division of the American Federation of Teachers. โWeโre hoping that all of our educators that want the vaccine take advantage of it, and as soon as possible.โPresident Biden said on Tuesday that he would direct all states to โprioritize educatorsโ and Tuesday night his acting secretary of Health and Human Services sent a letter to Texas officials doing just that. AdโThis is going to be a huge piece of helping us stabilize our school system,โ Capo said, โhelping us get the focus back on students.โState health officials have also asked providers to track the number of education and child care employees being given the shot as best they can. Read more about vaccine waitlists here.
SOUND OFF: Heres what some Houstonians are saying about students returning to the classroom next school year
HOUSTON Houston-area parents are playing the waiting game as schools release their 2020-2021 academic calendars and introduce possible reopening scenarios for returning students. We asked the question: What do you think your kids school needs most to be safely prepared for the 2020-2021 school year? How can they be expected to stay 6 apart when returning to school? Humble ISD is giving an option for rotational schedules for at school learning, but they do not have any plans set in place for how they will execute social distancing. Also allowing the parents who choose to keep their kid(s) home can still do remote learning through the school.
Educators call for billions more in federal aid for K-12 schools
With just a few months to plan for a school year that will look very different from any before, education leaders are pleading for billions more in federal aid for K-12 schools because of the coronavirus pandemic. About $13 billion of that went to K-12 schools, and is just beginning to trickle down to districts. Congress divided on new fundingHouse Democrats approved a new, sweeping spending bill in May called the HEROES Act, which included about $90 billion for K-12 schools and colleges. More than 1-in-5 charter school students and roughly 1-in-8 district school students attend schools in areas with low access to the internet, a report from the group found. But it advises local education agencies to choose a model that "best fits the needs of their students and families," and to consider other options.