Texas School Voucher Amounts Do Not Equal Up, Gov. Abbott Starts Special Session Today
Hello SAISD Parents and San Antonio Community Members,
This week I met with some teachers from school districts throughout Texas. I have always admired teachers because they give our children so much of their time. The idea that some of these teachers will now have to start over and look for a new school or job is sad. All teachers have a heart of gold that allows them to give to all of our children, and now our Governor has crushed their spirit. Today, we start the special session and once again go over the school vouchers; if this passes, it will give families $8,000 to help them attend a private school. Yet if we pass HB100, it would only increase the basic allotment, which hasn’t happened since 2019; and now it is $6,160; if the bill passes, then it would go up to $6,250 for 2024 then it would go up to $6,300 in 2025. So this is the raise they keep stating that our teachers, children, and staff would receive if HB100 passes. Parents, we need to ask our Governor why the basic allotment is lower than what they want to give for a school voucher, which is $8,000. I wonder why we cannot just add the $ 8,000 to our basic allotment because that would provide us with a little over $14,000 per student, which would help our school in many ways.
During the last session, the state was supposed to provide a 25% basic allotment increase for the support staff, but it is no longer in the bill. So the fate of our public schools is in the hands of all the billionaires who have dedicated millions of dollars to our Governor, our Lieutenant Governor, and the republican parties. These billionaires have created puppets to spread their ideology about what they think is a proper education. So now that they’re cutting down our public schools and clearing a path for private schools to come in and take over, it sends a clear message that they don’t want to deal with educational issues. I say this because private schools don’t have to be held accountable to TEA, nor do they have to hire certified teachers, which means that during future legislations, they will not have to work with school districts or superintendents. The other factor in this session is that our Governor has clarified that if we don’t pass a school voucher program or an educational savings account, he will ask for another special session until he gets what he wants. Now all we can do is figure out what rabbit hole we will fall into, and if this does happen WHAT billionaire will help us get out of all this mess they helped create?
Parents, as we go into our third special session, know that we are all tired but we will keep moving forward and continue advocating for public schools. I will keep everyone updated as we go through this special session. If anyone has any questions or concerns please email at lena.lopez@saobserver.com.
Have a blessed week,
Lena Lopez
