Capitol observers are noticing dramatic proposals leading up to the next Regular Session of the Legislature. Part of the momentum derives from a truly grim budget prognosis, which has generated a host of ideas that were once unthinkable (such as, for example, a proposed withdrawal from the federal Medicaid program, which is funded jointly with the states). Then there's the 2010 freshmen lawmakers, who believe they have a mandate to shake things up.
Veteran House member Rep. Fred Brown (R-Bryan) has frequently criticized the structure of the educational bureaucracy in Texas, holding a consistent belief that the separation of public education from higher education is outmoded and needs to go. Lately he has proposed that the Coordinating Board be merged with the Texas Education Agency (TEA), which is under the jurisdiction of the elected State Board of Education (SBOE)—most notably in matters of curriculum, testing, and textbook selection. Here's his bill.
Rep. Brown, who served many years on the House Committee on Higher Education, thinks the merger would save revenue, but also believes cost is not the principal issue. The matter is covered in a recent article by Reeve Hamilton in the Texas Tribune. By all means, please read the entire piece, since the points below are highly selective.
Community and technical college educators who have occasionally tossed a complaint or two in the direction of the Coordinating Board may wish to consider the implications of a mega-agency in charge of all education in Texas.
This quote from the Tribune piece is particularly interesting:
Higher Education Commissioner Raymund Paredes, whose position would be eliminated under such a proposal, sees several problems with the bill. “First of all, higher ed is pretty much overseen by appointed boards, and public ed is primarily overseen by elected boards,” he says, “and I don’t know how you reconcile that fundamental difference.”
The commisioner undoubtedly refers to university regents, who are appointed by the governor. However, community colleges are, like Independent School Districts, governed by elected trustees. Whether two-year schools would make a good fit under the umbrella of TEA is another matter.
More importantly, from the perspective of faculty, it might be worth contemplating perennial issues such as curriculum development and textbook selection. The SBOE for years has been embroiled in cultural controversies and ideological disputes attracting nationwide attention, most notably in the fields of evolutionary biology, history, and religion—areas in which conservative activists believe the subject matter has been hijacked by liberalism and secularism.
To put it charitably, the issues swirling around the SBOE have not always been covered favorably in the national press. Some Texas political leaders might say, "Who cares"? But reputation makes a difference in education. It's hard to imagine, for instance, a promising scholar from another state finding Texas very attractive if the culture wars of SBOE creep into higher ed. We've got enough problems already.
It's unclear at this point if Rep. Brown's bill has a chance of passage, but it's worth watching carefully in today's volatile political environment.
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