Emily Sass is a distinguished senior fellow in K-12 policy for Next Generation Texas at the Texas Public Policy Foundation.
A short time ago, virtual education was a niche offering in Texas public education, serving fewer than 1% of Texas students. However, the past 2 year’s pandemic-related closures have plunged the nation and state into an extended experiment in emergency remote education. The Texas Legislature now has an opportunity to update state policy on virtual and hybrid education to encourage a more robust, resilient education landscape that empowers both districts to create programs that serve the needs of their students and students with the ability to select the virtual offerings that will meet their needs.
Delivered to the Texas Senate Education Committee