Today’s Perspective
The National Education Association(NEA) is the beneath the surface of some heated discussions that suggest everybody, including Congress, is fed up with the union and wants to dismantle it for good by stripping its federal charter away from them.
The NEA's mission was to support America's teachers and strengthen schools with a radical agenda. But the union's mission is abandoned, and now it's being transformed into a political entity that's turning heads and gathering some harsh words.
The NEA is a federal charter, which is only a document issued by the U.S. Congress that establishes a corporation, defining its purpose, powers, and organizational structure. In NEA's case, it's essentially an educational labor union that acts with a grant of authority and legitimacy for the chartered entity, often conferring certain privileges and responsibilities, which have fallen by the wayside of its organizational mission.
Those original privileges and responsibilities agreed upon are no longer the mission of NEA, according to the latest trends surfacing from the organization. Those trends include “from branding President Trump a fascist to embracing divisive gender ideology and walking away from efforts to fight antisemitism, the NEA has become nothing more than a partisan advocacy group. Since the NEA is not prioritizing students, parents, or even teachers, it's time to remove Congress' seal of approval from this rogue organization," is how one Congressional member describes the union.
NES received its federal charter from Congress in 1906, and the charter can be found in Title 36 of the United States Code. The purpose of the charter was to elevate the character and advance the interests of the profession of teaching, and to promote the cause of education in the United States.
States can also charter unions, and in this sense, in Texas, the state's public education system is overseen by the Texas Education Agency(TEA), and the agency faces all kinds of challenges, from funding disparities and teacher shortages to student performance and political interference.
Texas has a long history of inadequate and unequal school funding, leading to disparities between wealthy and low-income districts, which the voucher program is supposed to fix.
Many districts are facing budget deficits that will have a negative impact on resources and programs.
The state's fiscal effort for education is below the national average, even with new state mandates that include security measures, which are more often underfunded and that place a strain on districts' budgets.
There’s also a Texas teacher shortage in areas of bilingual education, special education, and STEM fields, and this has led to a growing number of uncertified teachers being hired, which raises some major concerns about the quality of instruction in low-income districts.
The takeover of Houston ISD has prompted ongoing scrutiny due to a lack of accountability and transparency.
The Houston Federation of Teachers (HFT), the largest teachers' union in HISD, has been very vocal in its opposition to the takeover, citing concerns about transparency, fairness, and the impact on students and educators.
Today’s Top Story
WASHINGTON — Up to 1.7 million Texans are expected to lose their health insurance through the coming changes to the Affordable Care Act marketplace under Republicans’ tax and spending mega bill, according to an analysis by health policy experts — a serious blow to a state health care system already strained by the highest uninsured rate in the nation.
Message from the publisher:
A Texas Perspective is designed to be informative, historical, and educational, reflecting the ever-evolving political cultures in the country that no longer prioritize voters' interests.
There's more in today's issue of A Texas Perspective Magazine.
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