Texas Education Agency

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) is the branch of the government of Texas responsible for public education in Texas in the United States.[1] The agency is headquartered in the William B. Travis State Office Building in downtown Austin.[1][2] Mike Morath, formerly a member of the Dallas Independent School District's board of trustees, was appointed commissioner of education by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Dec. 14, 2015, and began serving on Jan. 4, 2016.[3]

Texas Education Agency

Agency overview
Formed	1949
Jurisdiction	Texas
Headquarters	1701 North Congress Avenue, Austin
Agency executives	• Mike Morath, Commissioner • Penny Schwinn, Deputy Commissioner for Academics • Martin Winchester, Deputy Commissioner of Educator Support • Kara Belew, Deputy Commissioner of Finance • A.J. Crabill, Deputy Commissioner of Governance • Megan Aghazadian, Deputy Commissioner of Operations • Melody Parrish, Chief Information Officer
Website	tea.texas.gov

The main offices of the Texas Education Agency are located in the William B. Travis State Office Building in Downtown Austin

History

Prior to the late 1940s, many school districts in Texas did not operate schools, but spent money to send children to schools operated by other districts. In the late 1940s, state lawmakers passed a bill abolishing those districts, prompting a wave of mass school district consolidation.[4]

Duties

TEA is responsible for the oversight of public primary and secondary education in the state of Texas, involving over 1,000 individual school districts in the state and charter schools. It is also responsible for the safety of students. However, it does not have any jurisdiction over private or parochial schools (whether or not accredited) nor over home schools.

Although school districts are independent governmental entities, TEA has the authority to oversee a district's operations (either involving an individual school or the entire district) if serious issues arise (such as poor standardized test performance, financial distress, or mismanagement). This can be in the form of requiring the district to submit corrective action plans and regular status reports, assigning monitors to oversee operations (including the authority to assign a management board, which essentially replaces and performs the duties of the elected school board), and in extreme cases closure of a school campus or even the entire school district.

The University Interscholastic League (UIL), which oversees academic and athletic interscholastic competition in Texas public schools, is a separate entity not under TEA oversight.

In addition to primary and secondary education, TEA has oversight duties with respect to driver's education courses (initial permits) and defensive driving courses (used to have a ticket dismissed and/or for lower insurance premiums).

Curriculum controversies

On November 7, 2007, Christine Comer resigned as the director of the science curriculum after more than nine years. Comer said that her resignation was a result of pressure from officials who claimed that she had given the appearance of criticizing the teaching of intelligent design.[5][6]

In 2009, the board received criticism from more than 50 scientific organizations over an attempt to weaken science standards on evolution.[7]

In 2010, a group of historians, including Jean A. Stuntz of West Texas A&M University in Canyon, Texas, signed a petition to oppose the revisions in the social studies curricula approved by the state board, changes which require the inclusion of conservative topics in public school instruction. For instance, Jefferson's name must be restored to a list of Enlightenment thinkers. There must be emphasis on the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States in regard to property rights. Students must be taught that new documents, the Venona project, and verify U.S. Senator Joseph R. McCarthy's suspicions of communist infiltration of the U.S. government during the post-World War II era. Stuntz told the Amarillo Globe-News that the SBOE is "micromanaging. They don't know what they're doing."[8]

In October 2012, The Revisionaries, a documentary film about the re-election of the chairman of the Texas Board of Education Don McLeroy and the curriculum controversy, was released.[9] In late January 2013, PBS's Independent Lens aired an abridged version the film.

Texas House Speaker Joe Straus of San Antonio, Texas said that the government should "take a look" at the structure of the board and consider a nonpartisan or appointed board if the elected members are "not getting their job done and they're not pleasing the Legislature or the citizens, then we ought to take) a thorough look at what they are doing."[10] In 2010, it was said to be "drafting its own version of American history", including altering school textbooks to remove what it said was a "left-leaning bias" and making changes that are said to have "religious and racial overtones".[11]

For example, the proposed curriculum would downplay Thomas Jefferson's emphasis on the separation of church and state (outlined in his Letter to Danbury Baptists), and would include a greater emphasis on the importance of religion to the founding fathers. Other changes include downplaying Abraham Lincoln's role in the civil war and putting more emphasis on the Confederate leader Jefferson Davis, questioning the Civil Rights Movement in addition to downplaying Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy, removing such instances and points of history such as downplaying slavery, putting more emphasis on the states rights cause during the Civil War. Critics of the proposed changes believe that such a focus on the religious elements of the founding period could cause teachers to omit lessons on history more pertinent to national standards.

Commissioner of education

The current commissioner of education is Mike Morath.[12] A former member of the Dallas Independent School District's board of trustees, he was appointed commissioner of education by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Dec. 14, 2015.[13]

The commissioner's role is to lead and manage the Texas Education Agency. The commissioner also co-ordinates efforts between state and federal agencies.[12][14]

Commissioners of Education[15]
#	Commissioner	Took office	Left office	Governor
1	J. W. Egdar	March 1950	June 30, 1974	Allan Shivers (1950–1957) Price Daniel (1957–1963) John Connally (1963–1969) Preston Smith (1963–1973) Dolph Briscoe (1973/1974)
2	M. L. Brockette	July 1, 1974	August 31, 1979	Dolph Briscoe (1974–1979) Bill Clements (1979)
3	Alton O. Bowen	September 1, 1979	May 31, 1981	Bill Clements (1979–1981)
4	Raymon L. Bynum	June 1, 1981	October 31, 1984	Bill Clements (1981–1983) Mark White (1984)
5	William N Kirby	Interim November 1, 1984 – April 12, 1985		Mark White (1984–1987) Bill Clements (1987–1991) Ann Richards (Jan 1991)
		November 1, 1984	January 31, 1991
-	Tom Anderson (Interim)	February 1, 1991	June 30, 1991	Ann Richards
6	Lionel Meno	July 1, 1991	March 1, 1995	Ann Richards (1991–1995) George W. Bush (Feb-Mar 1995)
7	Michael Moses	March 9, 1995	September 3, 1999	George W. Bush
8	James Nelson	September 9, 1999	March 31, 2002	George W. Bush (1999–2000) Rick Perry (2000–2002)
9	Felipe T. Alanis	April 1, 2002	July 31, 2003	Rick Perry
-	Robert Scott (Interim) (1/2)	August 1, 2003	January 12, 2004
10	Shirley J. Neeley	January 13, 2004	July 1, 2007
11	Robert Scott (2/2)	Interim July 2, 2007 – October 15, 2007
		July 2, 2007	July 2, 2012
-	Todd Webster (Acting)	July 3, 2012	August 31, 2012
12	Michael Williams	September 1, 2012	December 31, 2015	Rick Perry (2012–2015) Greg Abbott (2015)
13	Mike Morath	January 1, 2016	Incumbent	Greg Abbott

State Board of Education

TEA is overseen by a 15-member State Board of Education, elected from single-member districts[16] for four years.[17]

The board devises policies and sets academic standards for Texas public schools, and oversees the state Permanent School Fund and selects textbooks to be used in Texas schools.[18]

Since 2011, the board can still recommend textbooks, but public school districts can order their own books and materials even if their selections are not on the state-approved list. So far, most districts have continued to follow the state-endorsed textbooks, but that trend is expected to change in the next two years as the districts become more cognizant of their available options. Thomas Ratliff, a moderate Republican and the son of former Lieutenant Governor Bill Ratliff of Mount Pleasant, in 2010 unseated the Bryan dentist Don McLeroy, a former education board chairman who was the leader of the conservative bloc. Ratliff said in 2013 that the board is "far different" in political complexion that it was in 2010. Though the Republicans hold 10 of the 15 seats, social conservatives are no longer in the majority.[19]

SBOE Officers, Committees, and Members[17]

District	Name	Party	First elected	Seat up
1	Georgina C. Pérez	Dem	2016	2020
2	Ruben Cortez, Jr., Secretary	Dem	2012	2022
3	Marisa B. Perez	Dem	2012	2022
4	Lawrence A. Allen, Jr.	Dem	2004	2022
5	Ken Mercer	Rep	2006	2020
6	Donna Bahorich	Rep	2012	2020
7	Matt Robinson	Rep	2018	2022
8	Barbara Cargill	Rep	2004	2020
9	Keven Ellis (Chair)	Rep	2016	2020
10	Tom Maynard	Rep	2012	2020
11	Patricia Hardy	Rep	2002	2022
12	Pam Little	Rep	2018	2022
13	Aicha Davis	Dem	2018	2022
14	Sue Melton-Malone	Rep	2012	2020
15	Marty Rowley (Vice Chair)	Rep	2012	2020

Regions

Main article: List of Education Service Centers in Texas

Education Service Center Region XIII in Austin

To serve the large number of individual school districts and charter schools in Texas, TEA is divided into 20 regions, each containing an educational service center (sometimes called regional service center).

School and district accountability

Education performance rating

TEA rates schools and districts using the same four criteria. According to the TEA, the number of state schools and districts receiving the top ratings of "exemplary" and "recognized" increased from 2,213 in 2005 to 3,380 in 2006.[20]

Gold Performance acknowledgements

In addition to the state ranking, districts and schools can be awarded additional commendations (referred to as Gold Performance acknowledgements) for other noteworthy accomplishments not included in the ranking system.

Budget and enrollment

The Texas Education Agency is funded by the people of the State of Texas, at the direction of their elected legislature and with the consent of the Governor of Texas. The agency's budget must be approved on the legislature's biannual schedule. Revenues for the agency come from the state general fund (primarily sales taxes), the federal government, the Permanent School Fund (a sovereign wealth fund created by the state with revenues from public lands), and other sources.

Year	Budget, for fiscal year ($)	% Budget change over prior year	Enrollment (for school year ending)[21]	Enrollment % change over prior year	State funding per pupil
2020	$33,338,021,662*[22]	18%	-	-
2019	$28,161,490,444[22]	2%	-	-
2018	$27,698,128,088[22]	6%	5,399,682	0.8	$5,129.59
2017	$26,186,545,591[23]	-4%	5,359,127	1.1	$4,886.35
2016	$27,381,560,474[23]	5%	5,299,728	1.3	$5,166.60
2015	$26,112,248,988[24]	4%	5,232,065	1.6	$4,990.81
2014	$25,136,102,615[24]	-	5,151,925	1.5	$4,878.97
2013	-	-	5,075,840	1.5	-
2012	-	-	4,998,579	1.3	-
2011	-	-	4,933,617	1.8	-
2010	-	-	4,847,844	2.1	-
2009	-	-	4,749,571	1.7	-
2008	-	-	4,671,493	1.7	-
2007	-	-	4,594,942	1.6	-
2006	-	-	4,521,043	2.7	-
2005	-	-	4,400,644	1.7	-
2004	-	-	4,328,028	1.7	-
2003	-	-	4,255,821	2.3	-
2002	-	-	4,160,968	2.2	-
2001	-	-	4,071,433	1.7	-
2000	-	-	4,002,227	1.2	-
1999	-	-	3,954,434	1.4	-
1998	-	-	3,900,488	1.7	-
1997	-	-	3,837,096	1.0	-
1996	-	-	3,799,032	1.8	-
1995	-	-	3,730,544	1.6	-
1994	-	-	3,672,198	3.7	-
1993	-	-	3,541,771	2.4	-
1992	-	-	3,460,378	2.4	-
1991	-	-	3,378,318	1.9	-
1990	-	-	3,316,785	1.4	-
1989	-	-	3,271,509	1.4	-
1988	-	-	3,224,916	-	-

• - Budget figure is projection; all other years are actual expenditure as reported by TEA

References

1. "Welcome to the Texas Education Agency." Texas Education Agency. Accessed December 13, 2015. "Texas Education Agency 1701 N. Congress Avenue Austin, Texas, 78701"
2. "Week of April 16 – 20, 2001" (Archive). Railroad Commission of Texas. Accessed August 30, 2008. "The daily hearings schedule is also posted in the lobby of the William B. Travis State Office Building, 1701 N. Congress Avenue, Austin, Texas."
3. "Morath takes office as Texas Commissioner of Education". tea.texas.gov. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
4. Cervantes, Bobby. "Chopping block: school district consolidation." San Antonio Express-News. February 22, 2011. Retrieved on May 9, 2011.
5. "Evolution Debate Led to Ouster, Official Says". New York Times. November 30, 2007. Retrieved November 30, 2007.
6. "State science curriculum director resigns". Austin American-Statesman. November 29, 2007. Archived from the original on December 1, 2007. Retrieved November 30, 2007.
7. "Texas needs to get it right". National Center for Science Education. March 2009. Retrieved March 30, 2009.
8. "Brenda Bernet, "Rewriting the history books: Educators reflect on state's curriculum changes," May 18, 2010". Amarillo Globe-News. Retrieved November 14, 2010.
9. "The Revisionaries". rottentomatoes.com. October 26, 2012. Retrieved August 1, 2015.
10. "Straus: Look at changing state school board elections—maybe more". Star-Telegram. March 27, 2009. Archived from the original on April 2, 2009. Retrieved March 30, 2009.
11. Halkett, Kimberly. Texas looks to rewrite history. Al Jazeera. 9 April 2010.
12. "Office of the Commissioner". Texas Education Agency. Retrieved December 18, 2015.
13. Collier, Kiah (December 14, 2015). "Dallas Trustee is Next Education Commissioner". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved August 30, 2017.
14. "Commissioner's Biography". Texas Education Agency. Retrieved December 18, 2015.
15. "TEA Commissioners 1950-Present". Texas Education Agency. Retrieved December 18, 2015.
16. "District map (PDF)" (PDF).
17. "SBOE Officers, Committees, and Members". Texas Education Agency. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
18. "End poor guidance of Texas education". Austin American-Statesman. April 24, 2009. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved April 24, 2009.
19. Will Weissert, "Law weakens ed board", Laredo Morning Times, September 16, 2013, p. 6A
20. "Schools improve across the state". The Daily Texan. August 3, 2006. Archived from the original on February 21, 2007. Retrieved August 3, 2006.
21. "Enrollment in Texas Public Schools, 2017-18" (PDF). State of Texas, Texas Education Agency. State of Texas. August 2018. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
22. "Texas Education Agency Operating Budget Fiscal Year 2020" (PDF). State of Texas, Texas Education Agency. State of Texas. December 2019. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
23. "Texas Education Agency Operating Budget Fiscal Year 2018" (PDF). State of Texas, Texas Education Agency. State of Texas. December 2017. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
24. "Texas Education Agency Operating Budget Fiscal Year 2016" (PDF). State of Texas, Texas Education Agency. State of Texas. December 2015. Retrieved December 27, 2019.

External links

• Official website
• Texas Education Agency from the Handbook of Texas Online