Action Update - Issue 97 : :  April 24, 2007

Every Parent and Public School Teacher Should Study This Report!!

The Research is IN and the Data Shows:

School Choice Benefits Everyone

Students who participate in voucher programs are more likely to graduate and go to college; this is especially true for low-income students and minorities. It also suggests that increased competition from school vouchers will tend to increase graduation rates in the public school system.

The evidence presented in this research by John Diamond, PhD supports the view that Texas should adopt a targeted school voucher program. Examination of the San Antonio Horizon program shows that:

• Per student spending in Edgewood ISD increased after vouchers were introduced;
• The percentage of EISD students that passed the TAAS/TAKS exam
  increased after vouchers were introduced, indicating that students who
  remained in EISD were not adversely affected;
• The evidence suggested that private schools did not siphon off the best and
  brightest students from EISD;
• The graduation rate for EISD students increased at a faster rate relative to
  all other state students since vouchers were introduced; and
• Similar to the findings of other studies of school voucher programs across
  the U.S., Horizon participants seemed to benefit from the opportunity to
  choose their school, especially in terms of graduation and college attendance rates.

"The implementation of a targeted voucher program for low and middle income students would likely increase graduation rates, which is of particular importance given the current crisis in high school graduation rates among urban minorities in Texas."

Profiles of students from the Horizon Scholarship Program:

Rebecca and Robert Sanchez are the children of a 30-year public school teacher who wanted more opportunity for her children. With help from the Horizon Program, she enrolled Rebecca in a different school where she excelled. Rebecca then went on to graduate from the University of Texas at San Antonio. She is now working on a master’s degree in higher education administration at UTSA.

Robert Sanchez used his Horizon Scholarship to enroll in Texas Military Institute in San Antonio and is currently a junior at Yale University with plans to enter medical school. Mr. and Mrs. Sanchez are ecstatic that their children have realized their dreams, and that both discuss coming back to their community to help make a difference in the lives of others.

Pearl Romo is the first in her family to enroll in college. The Horizon Program helped her enroll in the school that her mother thought was best for her daughter. Upon graduation, Pearl enrolled in a local community college’s criminal justice program. She is well on her way to an associate’s degree and has now submitted her application to the San Antonio Policy Department. Pearl hopes to work for the FBI after continuing her education at a local university.

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Contact Lt. Governor David Dewhurst and tell him you are ready for school choice in Texas.  Phone: 512-463-0001

“Government always finds a need for whatever money it gets.”
-- Ronald Reagan      

from Michael Quinn Sullivan, TFR     

The Gipper had it right. The longer our tax overpayment (the state’s “surplus revenues”) sits unreturned, the more likely legislators are to spend it.

An Education on Tax Relief So in fine Reaganesque fashion, State Rep. Ken Paxton (R-McKinney) is trying to get your money back into your hands. To accomplish that, he introduced House Bill 2785, which would provide more than $2.5 billion in immediate property tax relief. Because the bill would cut local school district M&O property taxes, a hearing was held in the House Public Education Committee earlier this week.

And it is, right now, precisely… Just sitting there. The Public Education Committee chairman, Rob Eissler (R-The Woodlands), and other members should pass this A+ tax cut.

Senator Ogden? Taxpayers Are Calling…
Oh, and remember the House’s vote to abolish the no-longer-needed Telecommunications Infrastructure Fund tax? Well, that tax cut (H.B. 735) is mired deep in the recesses of the Senate Finance Committee. The TIF tax was established back in the 1990s to accomplish a single, well-defined task, and to raise a set amount of money. The money was raised, the job was done. They told us the tax would go away. Check your phone bill; you are still paying it.  Call Sen. Ogden today:  (512) 463-0105 !!

more at www.empowertexans.com

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Give Universities Incentive to Produce Results

By Brooke Rollins, Texas Public Policy Foundation

The impending retirement of the baby boom generation will have far-reaching consequences for Texas and the nation. The implications for our Social Security and health care systems have been widely discussed, but not nearly as much attention is being paid to what this mass exodus of skilled workers will mean for our economy.

Texas Workforce Commission Chair Diane Rath frequently speaks of the demographic cliff that Texas approaches. Over the next five to 10 years, some of Texas’ key industries will lose as much as half of their professional talent. Unfortunately, our public schools and state universities are producing nowhere near enough graduates who have the skills to be able to fill those vacancies.

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RECOMMENDED READING:

• 1,132 Schools Qualify for Merit Pay
  Teachers at the schools could earn an additional $3,000 to $10,000 based on the incentive pay plan adopted for their campus and how well theirstudents do on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills in the spring of 2008.

• House OKs Bill to Move Primary
  In past years, states holding earlier Democratic and Republican primarieshad already produced a prohibitive favorite by the time Texas held its March contest. Moving the date up would give Texans a bigger voice in the process.

• Texas Research Organization Lays Out Constitutional Amendment Proposal
  Texas voters have approved 439 amendments to the state Constitution since its adoption in 1876. One more proposed amendment will be submitted for voter approval at a special election on Saturday, May 12, 2007: Proportionate reduction in elderly and disabled school tax freeze amount.

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