Texas Republicans Throw Bush Under the Bus

Turns out the energy bill that phases out incandescent light bulbs was signed into law by George W. Bush in 2007.

Texas Republican lawmakers are throwing W under the gas guzzling bus, claiming its un-American to take away the power of Texans to choose. Yes, they were pro-choice . . .  when it comes to light bulbs?

So, in addition to being pro-terrorism (see: the sanctity of my private parts are a bigger priority than protecting everyone on the plane), Republicans in the Great State also want to prove they are bigger and badder than Mother Earth, legislating that, like the TSA security peeps, she keep her hands off them:

"I just believe that we should be able to buy what we want," Lavender said of the Texas law. "I've had calls from people in every state, and even in foreign countries, saying how much they appreciate this bill." 

"This is about more than just energy consumption, it is about personal freedom,'' said Rep. Joe L. Barton (R-Texas.), who's leading the repeal effort in the House. He recently cheered his state's action, declaring on Fox News: "I do thank the Lord that I live in Texas."

And, oh, snap, more evidence that Texas Republicans hate national security:

At his signing ceremony Bush said the bill was a “major step” toward making the United States “a nation that is stronger, cleaner and more secure.”

Note that Bush's energy bill also required automakers to make more fuel efficient cars. Look for the next Texas legislative session to feature bills that protect the right of Texas bubbas to drive gas guzzlers.

Poor George may have been born with a silver spoon in his mouth, but compared to the yahoos running his Party now, he looks down right progressive.

Fort Bend ISD Trustees in the News

Two interesting pieces of news out relating to Fort Bend ISD school board members.

First, Jim Babb is stepping down:

Fort Bend ISD Position 7 Board member Jim Babb has resigned from his seat, citing health reasons that he has chosen to keep private.

“It’s a very intimate issue that my family and I have decided to deal with on a private level,” said Babb.

His term runs through May 2013. The board can appoint someone to take his place or run a special election. My guess: appointment (and a conservative one, at that.) My preference: a special election. Let the voters decide who will represent their interests on the school board!

Second, we may have an unresponsive FBISD board member. We certainly have an irritated constituent:

What if you contacted someone running for the school board, never got a response and later when that person was elected, you still couldn’t get a response?  Byron Golden of Sugar Land tells the “Star” he’s tried six times.  Two of those attempts to get in touch with Fort Bend ISD School Trustee Patsy Taylor were after she took office this May. 

What Golden wanted to know when she was running for school board was about her educational background, both her undergraduate and graduate degrees with respect to their names and her areas of study. 

[---]

“Dr. Taylor’s arrogant behavior is a disservice to me as a taxpayer and for all FBISD taxpayers,” said Golden. 

This is the person who beat Jonita Reynolds by 52 votes out of nearly 8000 votes cast. I could find out very little about her during the election (no campaign website, if I remember correctly) and none of my Democratic friends in Fort Bend knew anything about her. Apparently the Fort Bend Star could not get her to return calls during the campaign. I supported Jonita.

I'm not sure what Golden's motivation is to make such a public complaint, and it will be interesting to see if Dr. Taylor responds.

Houston Area Charters and ISDs Face Budget Realities

News from the Chron about how legislative budget cut to public education will affect area charters:

KIPP:

The extended school week — one of the trademarks of the popular charter school system — is going by the wayside, along with out-of-Houston field trips and pay raises for employees.

KIPP will replace Saturday classes for middle schoolers with "independent study projects." That sounds like . . . homework. That's disappointing. One of KIPP's advantages with students in poverty is that they get a commitment from students to participate in extended time in school - including those Saturdays. In non-charters, teachers are desperate for extra time with students who need remediation - and the time is usually not there in the regular, required school hours.

YES Prep:

The YES Prep program, which starts its budget year Sept. 1, will spend the remainder of the summer figuring out how to trim about $2.4 million from its budget. They expect to make do with fewer supplies and trips. Increasing class size is also an option, said Ryan Dolibois, a spokesman for YES.

Clear Creek ISD 

Superintendent Greg Smith told the school board last week that once the legislation is signed by Gov. Rick Perry, CCISD is looking at about $17.5 less in state funding for the 2011-12 school year and $25 million less for the 2012-13 year.

There hasn't been a lot of public information as to how Clear Creek would handle the funding cuts. Here are some details:

The district will not remove the 5 percent Homestead Exemption for 2011-2012 or 2012-2013. The public, through community forums and an online survey, clearly stated its preference for a tax rate election versus eliminating the Homestead Exemption. There are no plans for a tax rate election for 2011-2012 school year.

Interesting that the public in this very Republican area is willing to have their taxes raised, but not have their homestead exemption taken away. CCISD is considering allowing out of district students to pay tuition to attend Clear Creek schools where there is room (interested parents - see their 2011 TAKS data here) , and eliminating some bus routes. The district will begin charging fees for extracurricular programs and transportation in 2012-2013. There will be a 10% cut in all operating budgets beginning this school year. $12.5 million in fund balances will make up the rest of the shortfall.

Fort Bend ISD Responds to Budget Cuts: Accepting Out of District Students

I think this is going to draw in some HISD students out of Southwest Houston and into Fort Bend ISD:

The district says they have class available at some campuses that they will open up this fall to out-of-districts students.  

Of the district's 11 high schools, five will be open. 

There will be even more opportunities at middle schools for out-of-districts students with 7 of its 14 open.  

And there are even more elementary campuses allowing the out-of-district transfer with 20 of 45 campuses opening up.

By the numbers:

Fort Bend ISD is projecting a $27 million budget shortfall for the upcoming school year. Their hope is out-of-district students will be a new revenue stream for the cash-strapped district. 

A state formula allots the district more than $5,200 per student in state funding. Bringing in 200 more students could mean more than a million dollars.

More details:

The opened up the system last year for employees to bring out-of-district students and that generated $750 million. 

All incoming students will have to provide their own transportation.

I can't tell from the FBISD proposed budget how many out of district students they are counting on. (June 7 budget summary here) And, I don't see a recap of the special called meeting of the Board on June 27, that might give that information.

Here is the list of the Fort Bend schools that are open and have space available for out of district transfers (in some cases, only certain grades are "open"):


Elementary:
AUSTIN PARKWAY Only 1st
BRAZOS BEND  Only 5th
BRIARGATE (K-6) Only 2nd, 5th
COLONY BEND All grades
COLONY MEADOWS Only  1st
COMMONWEALTH Only  1st, 5th
FLEMING Only K, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 5th(Bil)
GLOVER (K-6) Only 1st, 3rd,4th,5th
GOODMAN Only K, 2nd(Bil), 3rd(Bil), 4th, 5th
HERITAGE ROSE Only  1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 5th(Bil)
HIGHLANDS Only  3rd, 4th
HUNTERS GLEN (K-6) Only K, 1st, 3rd, 4th, 6th
EA JONES (K-6) Only K, K(Bil), 1st, 1st(Bil), 2nd(Bil), 3rd, 3rd(Bil), 4th
LANTERN LANE (K-6) Only 2nd, 4th, 6th
LEXINGTON CREEK Only K, 5th
MEADOWS Only K, 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th
MISSION BEND Only K, K(Bil), 1st, 1st(Bil), 2nd(Bil), 3rd, 3rd(Bil),5th, 5th(Bil)
MISSION GLEN Only K, 1st, 4th
MISSION WEST Only K, K(Bil), 1st, 1st(Bil), 2nd, 3rd, 3rd(Bil), 4th, 5th(Bil)
PALMER Only K, 3rd, 4th
PARKS Only K, K(Bil), 1st(Bil), 2nd, 2nd(Bil), 3rd, 4th
PECAN GROVE Only 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th
QUAIL VALLEY (K-6) Only 1st, 3rd, 5th, 6th
RIDGEGATE (K-6) Only K(Bil), 1st(Bil), 2nd, 2nd(Bil), 3rd(Bil), 4th, 4th(Bil), 5th
RIDGEMONT (K-6) Only 1st(Bil), 2nd, 5th
SEGUIN Only K, K(Bil), 1st, 3rd, 3rd(Bil), 4th, 5th(Bil)
SUGAR MILL Only 3rd, 4th

Middle Schools:
BOWIE All grades
CROCKETT All grades
FORT SETTLEMENT  All grades
DULLES All grades
MISSOURI CITY 7TH, 8TH
QUAIL VALLEY 7TH, 8TH
CHRISTA McAULIFFE 7TH, 8TH

High Schools:
BUSH All grades
TRAVIS All grades
MARSHALL All grades
WILLOWRIDGE All grades
RIDGE POINT 9TH, 10TH, 11TH


All information about the FBISD student transfer process can be found at this link.  A list of all FBISD schools with maps of their locations can be found here.

Like I started out saying, I'll be very curious if opening up FBISD will drain more talented students away from HISD in addition to those that have been scooped up by charters. Note that the overcrowded Clements high school - always a top ranked high school in the Houston area - is not on the "open" list. But, one of its feeder middle schools - Fort Settlement - is open to all grades. It's 2010 school rating - exemplary. That's a school that stands out to me as one for out of district parents to consider.

2010 accountability rankings (AEIS reports) for all FBISD schools can be accessed at these links: high schools, middle schools, elementary schools.