Texas’ political environment driving faculty to leave, survey finds
After legislators passed laws banning diversity initiatives and targeting tenure at state universities, more than a quarter of the 1,900 Texas professors surveyed by faculty associations said they plan to look for positions out of state.

How a state effort to fund Texas schools equitably is shortchanging dozens of rural districts
For decades, the Texas comptroller’s office has double-checked property valuations across the state, which help determine how much school districts can levy in property taxes. But when state and county appraisers disagree, districts can end up with big holes in their budgets.

Solid Employment Growth in July Leads to More Records in Texas
Texas has more jobs, more people employed, and more people willing and able to work than ever before as growth continued in July.

Despite post-pandemic improvements, STAAR scores show Texas students are still struggling with math and reading
Test results have gone up since the pandemic in both subjects, but math scores are still below 2019 levels and about half of Texas students read below the level appropriate for most children in their grade.

Perryman Group: Jobs By the Numbers
Texas continues to shatter records for new jobs. The expansion has been broad based, both in terms of industries and geographic areas. Our latest projections call for notable employment gains over the next five years, though the pace will vary along with external conditions.

Texas House panel recommends more funding, teacher resources to boost public education
A special Texas House committee focused on education has pinned down about 30 recommendations to improve public education in the state, including boosting funding for students and teachers, increasing literacy resources and revamping accountability measures, according to a report the panel released earlier this month.

Texas House committee report outlines possible path forward for school vouchers
The House blocked school vouchers during this year’s regular lawmaking session, but a report released Friday shows some members might be willing to approve a scaled-back version of the program that doesn’t compete with public schools for funds.

Perryman Group:  What Recession??
The reason to be encouraged is that inflation is slowing markedly without major disruptions to the labor market. 

How an internship program hopes to end “brain drain” in Texas’ Permian Basin and other rural regions
This is the third year businesses in the Permian Basin — known for high school football and oil fields — have participated in the University of Texas at Austin program. Students this year say they are seeing their hometowns in a new way.

Texas school districts forgo new buses, pursue layoffs to fund teacher raises after state inaction
Districts are scrambling after state lawmakers declined to pass a teacher pay raise bill or a comprehensive school funding plan, despite broad support and a record $30 billion-plus budget surplus.

House Subcommittee Appropriators Approve FY24 Education Funding Bill
Unfortunately, because House leaders chose to develop appropriations bills at a much lower funding level than agreed to in the debt limit deal, this bill makes significant cuts across education and workforce programs.

Texas leads on this important change to match college education, workforce needs | Opinion
Texas is now the largest state in the country to tie a majority of state funding for community colleges to student achievement, rather than attendance, as the result of a law enacted this year. House Bill 8, which comes 12 years after Texas first adopted outcomes-based funding for colleges and technical schools, significantly expands on this innovative approach that prioritizes student success and expands our educated workforce.

President Biden Announces New Actions on Student Loans
In the wake of the Supreme Court decision blocking President Biden’s proposal to forgive up to $20,000 in student loans for most Americans, the administration announced new steps to aid borrowers.

Private sector companies added 497,000 jobs in June, more than double expectations, ADP says
The U.S. labor market showed no signs of letting up in June, as companies created far more jobs than expected, payroll processing firm ADP reported Thursday.

With no new funding from the state, Texas schools are breaking the bank to pay for teacher raises
Lawmakers this year didn’t approve extra money to help schools pay for raises despite having an unprecedented $32 billion surplus — even after Gov. Greg Abbott commissioned a task force last year to improve teacher pay and retention.

Women are returning to the job market in droves, just when the U.S. needs them most
With employers adding hundreds of thousands of jobs each month, and unemployment near a half-century low, the U.S. needs more people to come off the sidelines to keep the economy growing.

As demand for skilled workers rises in Texas, work-based educational programs see a resurgence
Many Texas residents can opt for a variety of different educational programs that are shorter, more appropriate to their needs and often cost less than a bachelor’s degree.

Texas to receive $3.3 billion in federal funds to boost broadband expansion efforts
The federal money will be added to the $1.5 billion investment made by state lawmakers this session to increase broadband availability across Texas.

Hispanics are now the largest demographic group in Texas, census data confirms
Latinos outnumbered white populations by almost 129,000 people, according to Census Bureau data

Texas State Technical College considers opening a campus near San Antonio
The public community college is now authorized by the state to operate in Comal and Guadalupe counties.

Texas Civilian Labor Force Reaches Record 15 Million People
For the first time in history, the Texas seasonally adjusted civilian labor force crossed the 15 million threshold, adding 49,000 people over the month to reach 15,009,300 in May.

Opinion: A thriving border benefits all of North America
The termination of Title 42 represents more than a regulatory shift; it offers an exceptional opportunity to overhaul our immigration policies, aligning them with the contemporary global economy and the principles that define us as a nation.

Essential Employees
Although the numbers are temporarily decreasing as growth moderates and uncertainty rises, there remain about 9.6 million job openings across the country.

No teacher raises. A failed school voucher push. Armed guards. Here’s what changed for public education this legislative session.
Lawmakers sacrificed school funding to block school vouchers, but the issue could be debated again in a special session. Districts will get new funds for school safety, though Uvalde families were ultimately left disappointed with inaction on gun restrictions.

Gov. Greg Abbott calls immediate special session to address property taxes and border issues
Abbott noted many bills that were passed during the regular session, which ended around 6 p.m. Monday, but he added that “many critical items remain” and will require multiple special sessions.

Late deal sends new economic incentives for businesses to governor
After the previous, widely criticized program expired in December, lawmakers worked hard to craft a plan that won overwhelming support in both chambers.