The State Board of Education (SBOE) formally voted Friday, June 25, 2021, to veto four of the seven new charter school chains proposed by Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath.  

Charter schools are privately operated but funded by public taxpayer dollars. Outside of the Legislature, the SBOE is the only elected body that gives Texas voters and taxpayers a chance to weigh in on how public money is used to fund these organizations. Once a charter chain is initially approved for even a single campus, the unelected commissioner of education can allow that chain to open an unlimited number of new taxpayer-funded campuses without voter input.

The board has shown increasing independence from the commissioner with regard to new charter schools, which have expanded rapidly in Texas over the past decade. SBOE members vetoed three of eight proposed applicants in September 2020, and Friday’s vote represented the first time the board has vetoed a majority of applicants.

The board voted to veto Heritage Classical Academy, The Justice Hub, and Red Brick Academy, three charter chains proposed in the greater Houston area. The board also vetoed the application of S.H. James Preparatory Academy proposed in San Antonio.

The board held a preliminary vote Wednesday. Before Friday’s formal vote, Member Ruben Cortez (D-Brownsville) said he was disturbed to learn that some members who had initially voted to veto had been contacted by the governor’s office and urged to change their vote. “This is about power, not kids,” Cortez said of Gov. Greg Abbott’s involvement.

The most contentious vote involved Rocketship Public Schools, which proposes opening four campuses in an economically disadvantaged section of Fort Worth. Rocketship has been previously vetoed by the board, and several members accused the chain Friday of being misleading in their representations to the SBOE.

Member Aicha Davis (D-Dallas), in whose district the school will be placed, spoke forcefully about the economic and academic repercussions of opening a rapidly expanding charter chain in Fort Worth ISD instead of investing in neglected public schools already in existence. Davis called out her colleagues for vetoing charters in their own districts yet voting to approve the new charter in hers.

Member Jay Johnson (R-Pampa) said while he initially held reservations, he was supporting the charter chain after he was contacted by the commissioner and assured that the charter will be initially limited to two campuses and not be allowed to expand unless it achieves a “B” or better under the public school accountability system. Davis pointed out that the agreement was essentially a “handshake” deal with the commissioner. Agency legal staff confirmed that the commissioner has the sole authority to determine how the charter applicant is dealt with once the board grants its approval.

Member Cortez asked for legal clarification whether it was appropriate for the commissioner to advocate for the approval of charter schools while he is statutorily prohibited from lobbying the Legislature. Texas Education Agency (TEA) General Counsel Von Byer stated the SBOE does not count as the Legislature, but acknowledged that as an employee of the commissioner, his opinion is not impartial.

The board approved Rocketship on a vote of 8-7. Chairman Keven Ellis (R-Lufkin) and Members Marisa Perez-Diaz (D-San Antonio), Lawrence Allen (D-Houston), Will Hickman (R-Houston), Tom Maynard (R-Florence), Pat Hardy (R-Fort Worth), Sue Melton-Malone (R-Robinson), and Johnson voted in favor of Rocketship’s application. Members Georgina Perez (D-El Paso), Cortez, Rebecca Bell-Meterau (D-San Marcos), Matt Robinson (R-Friendswood), Audrey Young (R-Apple Springs), Pam Little (R-Fairview), and Davis voted against Rocketship.

The board also voted to approve Essence Preparatory Charter School in San Antonio and Thrive Center for Success, which proposes opening a single campus in Magnolia to serve students with autism.

Ahead of the board's discussion of the charter applications this week, ATPE joined with many other education organizations in urging the SBOE to consider particular factors and maintain transparency when deciding whether to allow new charter schools to open in Texas.

Earlier Friday morning, the board heard an update from TEA staff on bills passed by the 87th Texas Legislature this year that impact public education.  Agency staff tracked 947 bills related to public education this session, 124 of which passed both chambers. The Legislature took little action on the legislative priorities adopted by the board, including the board’s request to expand its veto authority to cover charter expansion amendments, which the Legislature did not consider.

One board priority submitted by Member Perez called for increased funding for counselors and mental health services. Although the Legislature did not increase funding, it did pass Senate Bill (SB) 179, which requires school boards to adopt a policy that counselors spend at least 80% of their time on “actual counseling” duties.

The Legislature also passed SB 1232, which will allow the board to merge the SBOE and School Land Board (SLB) portions of the Permanent School Fund (PSF) to a new Permanent School Fund Corporation staffed by appointees of the governor, SBOE, and SLB. Member Maynard, who chairs the SBOE Committee on School Finance/PSF, said SB 1232 would reunite the PSF and allow for the investment of $4 billion in currently uninvested cash under the control of the SLB. Member Cortez raised concerns over relinquishing direct board oversight of the fund and emphasized the importance of protecting intergenerational equity and the SBOE’s constitutional authority over the fund. General Counsel Byer explained that SB 1232 sets an expectation but does not necessarily require the SBOE to act.

The board also discussed House Bill (HB) 3979, which requires the SBOE to adopt very specific Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) regarding social studies. Member Perez-Diaz asked what impact anticipated litigation against the new law would have on the requirement to adopt new TEKS. Byer said it would depend on whether a court issues an injunction against all or part of the bill, and he pointed out that HB 3979 includes a severability clause that protects unaffected components of the bill in the event one component is invalidated by the courts.

Agency staff explained that the addition of curriculum-related bills such as HB 3979, SB 1063, and HB 4509, increases the load of TEKS scheduled for upcoming review. The deadline for changes under HB 3979 is December 31, 2022. Staff suggested they are on track for adoption by that November, but cautioned timelines are often prone to shifting. The board voted to postpone adoption of science TEKS previously scheduled for this week’s meeting to the September 2021 meeting.