AUSTIN – James Golsan, scholar at the Texas Public Policy Foundation's Center for Education Policy, issued this statement on the forthcoming vote on Senate Bill 2:
"Sometime in the coming 36 hours, the 83rd Texas Legislature is likely to take a final vote on Senate Bill 2. This crucial piece of legislation is one of the last opportunities this regular session has for real and enduring educational reform in the Lone Star State – and for the future of our children, it is imperative that it passes and is enacted into law.
"SB 2 is a much-needed start in the student-centered reforms Texas needs. By raising the cap on open-enrollment public charter schools to 285, it would give options to the more than 315,000 Texas public school children who are assigned to failing schools – and to the parents who do not have the resources to homeschool or pay private school tuition. We know there is ample demand, with over 101,000 Texas students waiting to attend open-enrollment public charter schools right now.
"Texas children deserve better than the status quo – and Texas parents deserve more choices, and more control, over their children's future. SB 2 is a solid step forward toward a truly responsive, accountable, and effective education for all Texas kids and families – and that is why we urge the 83rd Legislature to pass it without delay."
James Golsan is a policy analyst with Texas Public Policy Foundation's Center for Education Policy, a non-profit, free-market research institute based in Austin.
The Texas Public Policy Foundation is a non-profit, free-market research institute based in Austin.
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