Texas Sen. Wendy Davis Schools Senate Ed Committee Chair on Voucher Bill

For months state Sen. Dan Patrick — the Republican chairman of the Texas Senate Education Committee — has insisted that the Legislature should divert millions of dollars from public education to subsidize tuition at private and religious schools. Sen. Patrick and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst even held a press conference at a parochial school in […]

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Not with a Bang, But with a Whimper

The wait is finally over. After months of promises and grandstanding, Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, with only hours remaining before the bill-filing deadline, finally fulfilled his pledge to file a school voucher bill. If you’ve been listening to Sen. Patrick since last August, you would think that this moment would be met with fanfare and […]

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Sen. Patrick Gives Texans an Odd Lesson on Civil Rights

Did you know that students attending private schools in Texas today face discrimination like African-American students did during the era of racial segregation? Sen. Dan Patrick, the Republican chairman of the Texas Senate Education Committee, seems to think so. Sen. Patrick was speaking at Tuesday’s Education Committee hearing on Senate Bill 573, a measure that […]

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What's Good for the Goose…

State Sen. Dan Patrick, the Houston Republican who chairs the Senate Education Committee, on Thursday criticized those who oppose his bill to expand charter schools in Texas: “I want you to understand that when you testify, you’re not testifying against a bill. You’re testifying against 100,000 families who are are on the wait list who […]

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