From state takeovers to religion in classrooms to who’s overseeing public schools, Texas is poised to see a profound shift in K-12 education priorities after Democrats swept statewide elected offices, including the governor’s race, attorney general’s office and control of state House.
Gina Hinojosa, a former Austin ISD school board president, became the first Democrat to win the governor’s seat since 1990 after campaigning on a platform of “saving” Texas public schools. She pledged to remove Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath from his role on her first day in office, as well as eliminate state takeovers of districts.
“We are taking our children’s education back from a government that has failed them,” Hinojosa said in her victory speech. “Schools will not be taken out of our control, shuttered or suffocated. Being a parent is hard enough without carrying the burden of a government’s failures.”
However, Hinojosa cannot single-handedly reverse years of Republican-led policies during the upcoming legislation session. Several of the issues she campaigned against are enshrined in state law, requiring help from the Legislature to alter or overturn.
Source: The 74 — Read the full article on the original site ↗