House Public Education Committee Chair Brad Buckley (R–Salado) has promised more school funding and a renewed push for Gov. Greg Abbott’s voucher proposal in the upcoming 2025 legislative session. 

The comments came Tuesday in Dallas at the State of Public Education event hosted by the Dallas Regional Chamber. Buckley and Texas Education Agency (TEA) Commissioner Mike Morath each discussed the current public education landscape while outlining their legislative goals. 

The agency continues to work toward the goal that at least 60% of Texans will hold a degree, certificate, or postsecondary credential by 2030. According to TEA data, Texas boasts a 90% high school graduation rate, but only 56% of graduates are enrolling in college. Current college completion rates sit at 36%, well below the 60% goal. 

Despite the setbacks caused by COVID-19, Morath said the pandemic proved kids learn better at school. Morath said the state has made strides in recovering from the COVID-19 disruptions but there is still significant ground to cover. He emphasized the need for improvements in reading, suggesting that roughly half of Texas kindergarteners and third graders are reading at grade level. 

Morath stressed that the single most important factor affecting student outcomes is the teacher in the classroom. He suggested low-performing schools must improve with a focus on reading. The commissioner defended the STAAR test and school accountability system while lamenting the delay of A-F ratings due to ongoing lawsuits over changes to the test that rendered its results unreliable. 

KERA Senior Editor Courtney Collins talks with House Public Education Chairman Brad Buckley (R–Salado) at the State of Public Education event in Dallas Tuesday, Sept. 18.

During a panel discussion, Buckley said work is underway on a school finance bill aimed at increasing school funding. He confirmed he still intends to prioritize the governor’s education savings account (ESA) voucher proposal, which would draw funding away from public schools to subsidize tuition for those attending private schools.  

When moderator Courtney Collins, a KERA senior editor, asked about accountability for voucher programs, Buckley claimed that his voucher bill had a testing requirement. It is important to note that Buckley’s voucher bill, House Bill (HB) 1, would not have required voucher recipients to take the STAAR test and thus would have yielded no way to compare the academic performance of private schools accepting taxpayer-funded voucher subsidies with that of their public school counterparts. 

Buckley also defended the use of the STAAR test and blamed student outcome issues on curriculum he accused of being below grade level. 

Both Morath and Buckley praised HB 1605, which offers districts financial incentives to use “high-quality instructional materials” (HQIM), including “open educational resources” (OER) developed by TEA. Morath called the bill a "game-changer," while Buckley contended that HQIM covers more curriculum standards than previous materials that have been required to address at least 50% of the required standards. 

Buckley acknowledged what he called a “staggering” percentage of uncertified teachers, which he attributed to a shortage of qualified educators. He hinted at “big stuff” on the way regarding teacher preparation during the next legislative session.  

The House chairman admitted that Texas fell short on funding for safety measures and said there is consensus across the Legislature to increase funding for this critical issue in the upcoming session.