By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Page 7A When Columbia fell out of the sky Saturday morning, the spirits of Cal Farley’s Boys Ranch fell with it. The West Texas ranch has been taking in at-risk children since 1939, and Amarillo native Rick Husband volunteered to carry one of the school’s banners into space when he […]
Category: DMN | Education
Big test lies ahead for Texas schools; State: 30% may fall short of new standards, face federal sanctions
By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Page 1A Thirty percent of Texas schools – more than 2,000 in all – will fail to meet tough new testing standards and could face federal sanctions if they don’t quickly improve, state officials said Thursday. “It will be a challenge for our schools,” said Debbie Graves Ratcliffe, spokeswoman for […]
It’s Grusendorf’s time to make the grade; No longer the maverick, Arlington lawmaker poised to lead education panel
By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Page 1A When Kent Grusendorf first ran for the State Board of Education in 1982, he was an outsider, lobbing criticism into the education establishment. Now he is the establishment. The things he has pushed for ? a strong accountability system for schools, less power for teachers, more autonomy for […]
Wealthy but still in need?; Affluent Eanes ISD says state law puts schools in financial crisis
By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Page 1A WEST LAKE HILLS, Texas – Begging doesn’t come easy to the men and women of the Eanes Independent School District. The people of Eanes are doctors, lawyers, business people. Within the district’s boundaries reside many of the Austin area’s power elite. It’s one of Texas’ wealthiest school districts. […]
Universities want to set their own tuition; Opponents fear huge cost jump if Legislature gives up rate-setting
By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Page 1A Texas’ universities believe there are plenty of parents who could afford to write bigger tuition checks every semester. Now they want the power to tap into that wealth. The state’s top education officials are asking the Legislature to give up its traditional power to set tuition rates at […]
Texas schools: average? Report on education policies critical; state disputes some points
By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Page 19A Texas schools don’t deserve a spot on any honor roll, according to a new report that rates the state’s education system as downright average. As in previous years, the state got middling grades in the annual Quality Counts report, which attempts to judge the education policies of 50 […]
A bleaker view of dropout problem; 17 districts’ ratings would be lower if federal definition used
By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Page 1A Seventeen area school districts would have had their state ratings lowered last year if the word “dropout” meant the same to Texas officials as it does to the federal government, according to a new data analysis. For the first time, the state has recalculated the dropout rates of […]
St. Mark’s checkmates chess kings
Page 35A David took down Goliath all right – but with a rook, not a slingshot. Freshman Nate Conrad pulled off a major upset last weekend in Atlanta to give St. Mark’s School of Texas ninth-graders the national team chess championship. The team – Nate, Christian Leppert and Jared Forbus – beat out 18 teams, […]
A changing of the Bard; GP teacher puts Shakespeare in students’ lingo
By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Page 1A But, soft! what light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Juliet is the sun. Yeah, it may be pretty and all, but it goes on for another 23 lines! Why couldn’t Billy Shakespeare just cut to the chase: “Juliet is a hotty!” That’s the approach […]
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One district reaps the benefit of another’s belt-tightening; Pinch of state finance law getting worse, Richardson ISD says
By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Page 1A QUINLAN – For a while, there were no Friday night lights at Boles High School. They couldn’t afford them. Boles is part of the poorest school district in Texas. Years ago, someone figured out the school could save money on electricity if the field lights weren’t turned on […]