Brian Lopez
Texas Tribune
San Antonio, TX, United States
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Past articles by Brian:
At parental rights event, Gov. Greg Abbott sheds light on how he’d implement “school choice” policy
For the first time, Abbott makes it clear which policy he supports. Bills that would allow parents to get state money to send their kids to schools outside of the state’s public education system have been floated previously, but top lawmakers believe the policies will pass this session. → Read More
Politics and pandemic are driving Texas teachers to consider quitting, survey finds
An online survey of 1,291 teachers by the Charles Butt Foundation shows more teacher dissatisfaction as Texas school districts scramble to attract talent. → Read More
High-poverty schools struggle to earn Texas’ highest rating. Some in the Rio Grande Valley break that trend.
The Texas Education Agency has dismissed the notion that the accountability ratings are a poverty rating. As evidence, they point to districts like those in the Rio Grande Valley, which have achieved high marks while serving a high number of economically disadvantaged students. → Read More
A North Texas school district may let teachers reject children’s chosen pronouns — even if parents approve
The Grapevine-Colleyville district, located between Dallas and Fort Worth, just added two conservative members to its seven-member school board in May. → Read More
Uvalde school officials to discuss firing Pete Arredondo on Aug. 24
The meeting will happen exactly three months after Arredondo was among the first law enforcement officers to arrive at Robb Elementary, where a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers. → Read More
After the Robb Elementary shooting, some Uvalde parents are choosing private or online education
Following a state report showing that almost 400 law enforcement officers showed up at the school on May 24, some Uvalde parents are doubtful over whether their kids will be safe in the district. → Read More
Rural Texans—even conservative ones—unconvinced by Republicans’ public school privatization crusade
As a Texas school superintendent, Adrain Johnson is no stranger to the struggles small, rural public schools face, from trying to recruit teachers, especially after more than two years of navigating school during a global pandemic, to a general lack of resources. → Read More
Texas Republicans are trying to sell school choice measures, but rural conservatives aren’t buying
Any school choice policy must win over rural Republicans, who have historically been against diverting public dollars to private schools. → Read More
Rural Texas districts struggling to attract teachers are switching to four-day school weeks
The switch to four-day school weeks is popular among smaller school districts that don’t always have the finances to attract or retain teachers with pay increases. → Read More
Texas will resume inmate transportation after completing review of convicted murderer’s escape
The review came after Gonzalo Lopez escaped on May 12 and eventually killed five people. → Read More
Robb Elementary students will be relocated to two other schools this fall, superintendent says
At a news conference Thursday, Superintendent Hal Harrell outlined the plan to move students but would not take any questions regarding school police Chief Pete Arredondo or investigations into the shooting. → Read More
For the children who survived the Uvalde shooting uninjured, trauma will take time to heal
Uvalde offers mental health resources for the victims and considers rebuilding the school where the shooting took place as the community tends to its invisible wounds. → Read More
Gun ownership is ingrained in Uvalde’s culture. Some here are rethinking how it should be regulated.
Longtime Uvalde residents say the city is a hunting mecca and the love for guns goes right along with it. But some would now support measures like raising the age limit to buy AR-style weapons or monitoring high-volume ammunition purchases. → Read More
Uvalde shooting pushes Texas teachers to breaking point
Tuesday’s school shooting is a tragic end to a terrible year for Texas teachers who faced two COVID-19 surges, staffing shortages, school boards fights, book bans. → Read More
With piles of campaign cash, Christian activists make North Texas school board races a state battleground
In Tarrant County, conservative PACs animated about the teaching of race and sexuality are flooding school board races with hundreds of thousands of dollars. → Read More
Facing a teacher shortage, Texas considers a more rigorous teacher certification exam
Two states have dropped the Educative Teacher Performance Assessment, and three others passed on it or want it gone. → Read More
Amid a teacher shortage, some Texas educators are losing their licenses for quitting during the school year
The policy sidelines educators, often for two school years, at a time when districts are already struggling to keep teachers in the classrooms. → Read More
Texas teachers say they’re pushed to the brink by law requiring them to spend dozens of hours unpaid in training
K-3 teachers in Texas have until 2023 to complete a 60-hour Reading Academies course to keep the job. It’s taking some 120 hours on their own time to finish. → Read More
Texas big-city schools are dropping their mask mandates in response to new CDC guidelines
As the omicron surge dwindles, school district officials move to lift mask mandates. → Read More
Texas schools are majority Hispanic. There’s been a shortage of bilingual teachers since 1990, and the pandemic made it worse.
The pandemic is driving educators away from the profession, including key areas such as bilingual education. → Read More