Back to School with Educate Texas - Fall 2021 Newsletter

As the summer comes to an end, students and teachers across the state return to the classroom facing many unknowns about what the coming year will bring. While we recognize these challenges, one thing is clear - together, we must continue to strive for excellence and equity in our collaborative response to our state's education needs.

Educate Texas works to transform public and higher education systems for our highest need students and families. Over the summer, we have worked closely with our public and private partners to support a safe and successful new school year.

We hope you are encouraged by these updates from our programs, partnerships, and policy teams in pursuit of our goal, which is to empower students to realize their dreams and fuel a thriving Texas.

Getting Students College- and Career-Ready Educate Texas is proud to continue our partnership with the Texas Education Agency (TEA) in supporting the College and Career Readiness School Models (CCRSM) Network. The CCRSM Network is made up of more than 470 Early College High School (ECHS); Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH); and Texas Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (T-STEM) campuses designated by the TEA. For the 2021-2022 school year, Educate Texas is proud to renew our commitment to providing highquality technical assistance to school leaders and educators, helping to serve nearly 127,000 students across the state.

Learn More About College and Career Readiness School Models

Now beginning its third year, the Texas Impact Network, a joint venture between Educate Texas and the Commit Partnership, is proud to have served more than 2.1 million Texas public school students, which is more students than the K-12 student populations of 46 different U.S. states.

Our Texas Impact Network 2021 Scorecard highlights the depth and breadth of our impact across Texas. We work with state and regional partners to help school districts make the most of Texas House Bill 3’s funding for evidence-backed programs: the Teacher Incentive Allotment; the College, Career, and Military Readiness Outcomes Bonus; and the Additional Days School Year initiative.

Read our Texas Impact Network 2021 Scorecard

Equity-Focused Opportunities in Higher Education

In Spring 2021, Educate Texas launched our Workforce and Education Community College Apprenticeship Network in Texas (WE CAN TX) to strengthen connections between colleges and employers. Our focus is on expanding apprenticeships for students and young adults in high-demand industries that provide livable wages and advancement opportunities. To support this expansion, Educate Texas is working with regional partners to align with local employer needs.

Learn More About WE CAN TX

Educate Texas will soon launch a new initiative supporting Texas’ Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), which make higher education more accessible for minority, low-income, and first-generation college-going students.

These campuses support equitable education and upward mobility for people of color. However, long-standing challenges of declining enrollment, lack of funding, and low graduation rates pose a threat to HBCUs. Educate Texas’ new collaboration with Huron Consulting Group and Bellwether Education Partners will use data to build on HBCUs’ strengths so that more students have the support they need to access and persist through higher education.

Policy Impacts Texas Education Texas public schools face another year of uncertainty in delivering classroom instruction, and districts are facing new challenges to support quality teaching and learning while ensuring safety in classrooms. With the rise of COVID-19 cases across the state again, lawmakers in Austin passed Senate Bill 15 in late August, pivoting from an earlier mandate that all students must return to inperson instruction. With the passage of Senate Bill 15, the state has now agreed to provide funds for local districts to offer virtual learning if their school system meets a statewide accountability threshold and if students meet certain attendance and performance benchmarks.

With more special sessions on the horizon and as new federal education dollars flow into Texas schools, Philanthropy Advocates, a collaboration with Educate Texas, is tracking new developments in public and higher education policy and how stakeholders can effectively advocate on behalf of Texas students.

Stay Updated with Philanthropy Advocates’ Blog

The 2020 Census in Texas The results of the 2020 Census are out. Despite historic challenges to get out the count and a delay in compiling the results, the U.S. Census Bureau released new data in August about the population growth in our country over the past decade. Detailed results show that Texas gained more residents than any other state, and is home to more than 29 million people and some of the largest and fastest-growing cities in the U.S. The population growth our state recorded through the 2020 Census ensures Texas gets our share of federal funding to enhance education, healthcare, infrastructure, and more. Communities Foundation of Texas is proud to have supported the Texas Counts initiative and the Texas Counts Pooled Fund, and has recently launched a website to share our Texas 2020 Census learnings and results.

Learn More About Texas’ 2020 Census Count and Results

Building Thriving Communities Educate Texas leads programs, policy, and partnerships to increase academic achievement and educational equity for all Texas students. As an initiative of Communities Foundation of Texas (CFT), we know that thriving communities are built on thriving education systems.

As part of that commitment, Communities Foundation of Texas for Business (CFT4B) presented the 20th Annual Freedom Day, a communitywide service event in North Texas last week on Friday, September 10. Learn more about the Freedom Day greenhouse restoration project hosted by Educate Texas in partnership with Cedar Hill ISD. Interested in supporting your favorite education organizations for CFT’s North Texas Giving Day? From now until midnight on September 23, you can give to Educate Texas, and choose from more than 3,000 other non-profits on NorthTexasGivingDay.org.

Visit NorthTexasGivingDay.org