Top 5 This Week

Related Posts

Gov. Abbott Doubles Down on School Vouchers 

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott doubled down on his push for a universal school choice voucher program on Monday, stating that he would not accept anything less than a broad initiative allowing families to use public funds for private school tuition. Abbott also resisted calls to increase public school funding across the board, reinforcing his stance that additional education dollars should be primarily directed toward merit-based teacher pay raises.

In an interview with The Dallas Morning News, Abbott emphasized that his success in last year’s primaries—where he targeted House Republicans who opposed school choice—was a clear mandate from Texas voters. “I won all of those races because the voters want school choice,” Abbott said. “So now there’s no reason for us to ratchet back on what we’re going to do.”

School Choice as a Legislative Priority

Abbott’s legislative agenda is centered on expanding education savings accounts (ESAs), with $1 billion earmarked to help families cover private school expenses and tuition. Unlike previous attempts that were blocked by a coalition of rural Republicans and urban Democrats, Abbott claims to have secured enough votes in the Texas House to pass school choice this session.

“Government-mandated schools cannot meet the unique needs of every student. But Texas can provide families with choices to meet those needs,” Abbott said during his 2025 State of the State address, arguing that ESAs would improve educational outcomes while continuing to fully fund public schools.

Public education advocates remain concerned about the potential consequences of such a program, arguing that diverting funds to private schools could weaken the public education system. Abbott, however, dismissed these concerns, contending that public education in Texas is already funded at historical levels and suggesting that administrative spending should be curtailed in favor of teacher salaries.

Teacher Pay and Public School Funding

While Abbott supports teacher pay raises, he insists they should be largely merit-based. “We want to ensure that we’re putting teachers on a pathway to be able to earn a six-figure salary,” he stated. To achieve this, he proposed a $750 million investment in the merit-based Teacher Incentive Allotment, emphasizing that the best teachers should be rewarded.

Additionally, Abbott announced a $500 million initiative to bolster school security, aiming to address both external threats and in-class disciplinary issues.

A Senate proposal would add $4.9 billion to the Foundation School Program, including a $4,000 raise for all teachers and an additional $6,000 for those in rural areas. However, Abbott did not endorse across-the-board pay increases, maintaining that performance-based incentives are a better approach.

State Rep. Rafael Anchia, D-Dallas, pushed back on Abbott’s claims, arguing that public schools are underfunded due to inflation and unfunded mandates like increased security requirements. “The unfunded mandates that both he and the Legislature put on local school districts, we need to make them whole,” Anchia told The Dallas Morning News. He also criticized Abbott for withholding education funds to push his voucher plan, calling it a “subsidy of private schools.”

In a press release, Zeph Capo, president of Texas AFT, criticized Governor Greg Abbott for calling on the Legislature to prioritize teacher pay while simultaneously pushing a private school voucher program that could divert funds from neighborhood public schools. Capo noted that Abbott, who oversaw a year of school closures and layoffs, is now advocating for policies that could further strain public education resources.

“I don’t know how the governor can reflect on the last year and conclude that private school vouchers are one of the seven most pressing issues facing our state, much less an emergency. Texas AFT remains committed to our vision for healthy, safe, and vibrant Texas public schools – a vision that does not include and is, in fact, endangered by private school vouchers,” Capo concluded.   

Banning DEI in K-12 Schools

Building on last session’s ban on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs in higher education, Abbott called for expanding this prohibition to K-12 schools. “We must purge it from every corner of our schools and return the focus to merit,” he said. He also proposed banning educators from discussing gender identity outside of the state’s legal definition, stating, “Any teacher who tells a student otherwise should be fired on the spot.”

What’s Next? 

Despite past tensions among state leadership, Abbott described his recent meetings with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dustin Burrows as highly productive. “The meeting that we had this last Wednesday was the most productive breakfast meeting of any of those that I can recall having with any other triumvirate. We got right down to business,” he said.

As Abbott prepares for a campaign-style event in support of school choice at a private Christian school in Athens, the battle over vouchers and public school funding is set to be a defining issue of the legislative session. This echoes the last session, where Abbott frequently campaigned at private schools to rally support for vouchers.



RA Staff
RA Staff
Written by RA News staff.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Award-App Footer

Download our award-winning app