Transcript Highlights:

• We saw some students who were on grade level.
• reading expectations in 2019, were able to catch up to perform at grade level by sixth grade.
• We went in about three second grade classrooms. We saw some students who were below grade level.
• We saw some students who were below grade level. We saw some students who were on grade level.
• level reading expectations in 2019, were able to cash up to perform at grade level by sixth grade.

Summary: The Senate Committee on Education K-16 met with a quorum and announced a full agenda, including combined public testimony for two bills related to student personal communication devices. The committee first took up Senate Bill 1262 by Senator Nichols, a school safety cleanup bill following House Bill 3. The bill would allow TEA to commission peace officers for school safety purposes, require annual renewal of good-cause exceptions to armed guard requirements, create a new report based on intruder detection audits and vulnerability assessments, and require behavioral threat assessment teams to include someone with specific knowledge of a special education student’s disability. Committee members asked about the difference between TCOLE licensing and TEA commissioning, the scope of the officers’ authority, and how the good-cause exception would work. The committee substitute was adopted, and public testimony included support from school safety and drone-response advocates, Disability Rights Texas in favor of the special education provisions, and a student witness raising concerns about the mental health impact of repeated lockdowns and the need for immediate, reliable school safety responses. The bill was left pending after testimony, then the committee briefly recessed and later reopened testimony to hear the student witness. The committee then laid out Senate Bill 2252 by Senator Creighton, a major early literacy and numeracy bill for kindergarten through third grade. Creighton said the bill builds on prior literacy efforts by funding teacher stipends for literacy and math academies, providing free and clearly administered screeners and assessments, expanding screening options, clarifying how results are used, supporting high-quality pre-K, and increasing the early education allotment. He emphasized low reading performance and the need for early intervention. Members discussed how the bill differs from earlier academy models and whether the assessments are diagnostic or high-stakes; Creighton and witnesses said the tools are intended to identify students needing support, not to serve as punitive testing. The committee adopted the substitute. Witnesses for SB 2252 largely supported the bill. A Uplift Education representative described strong gains from small-group literacy tutoring and said students receiving targeted support can make more than a year of growth in a year. An education specialist explained that the bill aligns general education screening with existing dyslexia and special education practices and helps districts identify students who need intervention before a disability evaluation is required. A Commit Partnership witness cited statewide reading data, the importance of high-quality pre-K, and the need for transparent, consistent progress monitoring and parent engagement. Members asked about the meaning of the growth data, how dyslexia screening works, and how the bill would help identify struggling students earlier. Before finishing all questions, the committee recessed subject to the call of the chair after the floor session.

Transcript Highlights:

• DO THEY DO IN THE FOURTH GRADE?
• II WHICH BY THE WAY IS NOT ON GRADE LEVEL, WE'D LIKE TO SEE THAT BAR RAISED OVER TIME AND HAVE A CONVERSATION
• LEVEL OR REACHING THAT LEVEL II AND IN THE FIRST ADMINISTRATION IT WAS MUCH MORE OF THE SECOND, MUCH
• LEVEL IN GRADE 3 AND CAN'T DO GRADE 3 WORK AND WE FIND A WAY TO MOVE THEM TO GRADE 4 ANYWAY THE QUESTION
• IS HOW DO THEY DO IN GRADE 4?

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We had a 10% increase across grades K-2 and in grades 3-8.
• This would be your page 7 on your handout, showing you performance by grade level and achievement year
• 9, PSAT 10 at grade 10, and then, of course, SAT at grade 11.
• For our school leaders, are they supporting teachers and making sure that grade level content...
• Layer one instruction is taking place at the grade level.

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, before we go… Times that we see at the top for specific grade levels—I assume they kind of just made
• of grade levels. through a certain level of grade levels, and that those computers are organized in
• And in my mind, particularly at the lower grade levels Particularly at the lower grade levels, where
• level or subject.
• level.

Keywords: 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We include here and grade level.
• You will see that in grade-level benchmarks the number of benchmarks in each grade level and for the
• You will see that in grade-level benchmarks the number of benchmarks in each grade level and for the
• You will see that in grade-level benchmarks the number of benchmarks in each grade level and for the
• :18.880> level number of benchmarks in each grade level number of benchmarks in each grade level

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I also share it with my principal and other lead teachers and other grade levels so that everybody knows
• In our PLC meetings, which is strictly by grade level, but our principal and assistant principal passed
• We have two classes per grade level, and there were four or five in our elementary that received merit
• He grew from a kindergarten level to reading about 48 words on a third-grade level at the end of the
• Then we have a meeting where I meet with my grade-level team.

Summary: The committee approved the March 9 and 10 minutes and then heard a presentation from the Arkansas Department of Education on the Arkansas Excellence in Teaching Fellowship, featuring three third-grade teachers from Cabot, Poyen, and Drew Central who are also teacher merit pay recipients. The teachers described the fellowship as a year-long Zoom-based collaboration with about 23 educators statewide, focused on sharing classroom strategies, data use, and professional support. Members asked about the teachers’ experience, how they share what they learn with their districts, the range of grades represented in the fellowship, and the relationship between the fellowship and merit pay. The teachers emphasized building relationships with students, using data to drive instruction, early intervention, and collaboration across grade levels, while the secretary said the program is intended to identify and elevate high-performing teachers and spread their practices. A major portion of the discussion focused on third-grade reading, retention, and the new ATLAS testing system. Teachers and the secretary said students are screened and progress monitored throughout the year, families are notified early if students are at risk, and schools are using interventions, tutoring, and individualized reading plans. They said ATLAS results are now available much faster than in the past, often within 24 hours or a few days, allowing teachers and parents to respond quickly. Members asked about the impact of poverty, trauma, foster care, DHS involvement, IEPs, and critical shortage areas; teachers said relationship-building, small-group instruction, and coordination with counselors and special education staff are key. The secretary said the fellowship is a small subset of a broader merit pay program, that participation was voluntary, and that the state is trying to build a coherent system with literacy coaches, high-impact tutoring, and clearer standards rather than teaching to the test. Members also discussed broader policy issues, including the need for more positive public messaging about public education, teacher input in decision-making, and support for early childhood education. Several legislators asked whether the state should expand funding for early learning and whether more literacy or academic coaches are needed in districts that improve and then lose eligibility for state support. The secretary said the state has committed literacy coaches to D and F schools and is still working through how to sustain support as schools improve. He also said the administration would look at data and return on investment before supporting additional funding, and he encouraged legislators to help recruit eligible teachers into future fellowship cohorts. After the teacher panel concluded, the committee moved on to the adequacy resource allocation study, where Bureau of Legislative Research staff began a presentation on state and local education funding sources, categorical funds, and district spending patterns.

Transcript Highlights:

• reading at grade level. reading at grade level.
• support reading at grade level have more support reading at grade level have more support and<01:
• it to kids who already can read at grade it to kids who already can read at grade level. level.
• read at grade level in third and fourth grade.
• level in third and fourth grade. level in third and fourth grade.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• at those grade levels and in that at those grade levels and in that content<01:09:11.640> area
• level, particularly in grade three, in primary grades.
• And how do we define better than just reading at grade level?
• We don't just reading at grade level?
• a standard outside of that grade band for that level.

Keywords: 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• they're missing school, I'm less concerned there than are students who are not on grade level.
• Are students who are not Are students who are not on grade level, are students who are not excelling
• grade.
• they learn at grade level and age-appropriate.
• level.

Keywords: 985, all

Transcript Highlights:

• level, and 31% can do math on grade level.
• below grade level.
• I mean, that's the minimum is that it's on grade level.
• One of them is grade level, and the other one is not meeting grade level.
• What, kindergarten through seventh grade? Adding a grade level each year up to 12th grade.

Summary: The committee continued hearing testimony on Senate Bill 2252, which would expand early literacy and numeracy screening, parent notification, intervention supports, and teacher training, including math academies and early childhood supports. Supporters from Texas 2036, Good Reason Houston, Texas Business Leadership Council, and several parents argued that early identification of skill gaps, clearer data for families, and stronger teacher preparation would improve student outcomes, workforce readiness, and long-term earnings. They cited low math proficiency statewide, the importance of early intervention, and examples of districts using screeners and data dashboards to guide instruction and resource allocation. One witness also highlighted home visiting as a family-support model, while another urged more funding for pre-K partnerships and stronger support for parents with reading materials and guidance. A district special education administrator testified neutrally, saying the bill reflects practices already used in her district but expressing concern that it could reduce local control and teacher discretion by standardizing screening and tying it to funding. A Texas Classroom Teachers Association representative supported the intent but warned that mandatory math academies and intervention academies could burden teachers if implemented like prior reading academies, and a substitute teacher/teacher-of-the-year witness asked for clearer protections around special education information and pay for alternative certification candidates. After public testimony closed, SB 2252 was left pending. The committee then took up Senate Bill 2253, as substituted, which would phase out routine hiring of uncertified teachers over time, require parent notification when a teacher is uncertified, and expand high-quality preparation pathways such as university programs, residencies, improved alternative certification, and grow-your-own programs. Senator Creighton said the bill responds to the rise in uncertified teachers and aims to strengthen the teacher pipeline with more structured preparation, mentorship, and oversight by SBEC. Invited testimony strongly supported the measure: a Texas Tech researcher said uncertified teachers and fast-track programs are associated with significant learning losses, while year-long residencies and mentored pathways produce stronger outcomes and higher earnings for students. Leaders from Dallas College and Sam Houston State University described successful residency and grow-your-own models, high completion and retention rates, and the need for paid residencies and stipends so candidates can afford to enter the profession. Committee members asked about the difference between mentorship and residency, the cost-effectiveness of paid residencies, retention incentives, and how to scale the model statewide. The committee also adopted the substitute for SB 2253 and later paused to vote out several other bills, including SB 1191, SB 1786, SB 226, SB 326, SB 570, SB 870, SB 991, SB 60, SB 365, SB 1401, and SB 1067, all of which were reported favorably, many with unanimous votes and some placed on the local and uncontested calendar.

Transcript Highlights:

• 29, which offers the state a sustainable framework to ensure every New Mexico student has access to grade-level
• these things are important information in assessing skills and knowing a student entry point into grade-level
• Right now, only one in four New Mexico students are performing at grade level in math.
• And then in lines 12 through 19, striking "or is at risk of not achieving grade level proficiency in
• So what are those standards that are required for each grade level?

Bills: SB29, SB64

Keywords: SB29, math requirements for teaching license, teacher licensure, teacher endorsement, mathematics methods, elementary education, secondary education, special education, early childhood education, reciprocity, Public Education Department, Mathematics and Science Education Act, mathematics instructional leadership framework, professional learning plan, K-3 screening, mathematics screening assessment, mathematics difficulty, support plan, multilevel support, intervention

Transcript Highlights:

• I also share it with my principal and other lead teachers and other grade levels so that everybody knows
• In our PLC meetings, which are strictly by grade level, our principal and assistant principal passed
• We have two classes per grade level, and there were four or five in our elementary.
• And then we have a meeting where I meet with my grade-level team. Ditto.
• There's two teachers in each grade level, and I want to say about 10 of them have 10 or more years of

Summary: The committee first approved the March 9 and 10 minutes, then heard a presentation from the Arkansas Excellence in Teaching Fellowship Program featuring three third-grade teachers from Poyen, Drew Central, and Cabot, along with Department of Education Secretary Jacob Oliva. The teachers described the fellowship as a year-long collaboration among 23 merit-pay recipients from across the state, focused on sharing classroom strategies, data use, and professional support. Members asked about teacher experience, how the fellowship information is shared locally, the role of merit pay, and how teachers are addressing third-grade reading and retention concerns under the ATLAS assessment system. The teachers emphasized early intervention, relationships with students, small-group instruction, progress monitoring, and communication with families; they also described community supports such as churches, food backpacks, and local donations. Several members raised broader questions about poverty, trauma, social services, DHS involvement, and whether similar professional learning should be expanded to more teachers. Secretary Oliva said the fellowship is a small subset of a larger merit-pay program, that participation was voluntary, and that the state is working to improve literacy supports, clarity, and alignment across grades. He also said ATLAS results are now available to schools and families much faster than in the past, often within 24 to 72 hours, and that the state is using the data to identify at-risk students earlier and support intervention before retention decisions are made. The committee then moved to the adequacy/resource allocation presentation from the Bureau of Legislative Research. Staff explained that the report is part of the statutory adequacy review and focuses on state funding sources beyond foundation aid, including categorical and supplemental funds. They noted that districts and charters spent more than $7 billion in the 2025 school year, with roughly 49% from foundation funding and 51% from other sources over the last three years. The presentation outlined the four categorical funds—Alternative Learning Environment, English Learners, Enhanced Student Achievement, and Professional Development—describing their restricted uses, student-based funding formulas, and the ability of districts to transfer some money among categoricals while keeping it within allowable purposes. Staff said categorical funds account for about 4% of total spending, or less than $300 million, and reviewed superintendent feedback on whether those funds met district needs, with responses varying by category and district.

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:02:54.400> as grade level beginning in kindergarten as grade level beginning in kindergarten
• I want to start grade level benchmarks.
• can learn to memorize words and read at grade level until about third grade, and even if they have faulty
• > third read at grade level until about third read at grade level until about third grade<00:22:50.640
• In fourth grade, there's 42 skills that are part of a grade-level test in being proficient in fourth

Bills: HF3421

Keywords: early literacy, reading instruction, teacher preparation, teacher candidates, teacher licensure, educator licensing, Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board, PELSB, field experience, supervised practicum, evidence-based reading, science of reading, literacy methods, teacher training, preservice teachers, school-based experience, reading intervention, Minnesota education policy, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• It is not grade-level performance.
• It says on the front page of NAEP that you should not confuse proficiency with grade-level performance
• standard or maybe unfortunately does not make a grade-level standard.
• And if it's just a matter of bringing it down a grade level, I think when teacher said, I don't have
• And if it's just a matter of bringing it down a grade level, I think when teacher said, I don't have

Summary: The Education and Employment Committee heard and passed HB 921, which adds cursive writing to required instruction for grades 2 through 5 and requires students to demonstrate proficiency by the end of fifth grade. The bill sponsor argued cursive is important for historical literacy, everyday signatures, and possible early identification of learning differences. Opponents and several members supported teaching cursive but objected to the testing/proficiency requirement, saying students and teachers are already overburdened and that reading cursive is not currently part of the standards. Some members also raised concerns about fairness to charter schools and the bill’s application only to public schools. Despite those concerns, the bill passed 21-0 and was reported favorable. The committee then took up PCS for HB 1405, a major rewrite of Florida’s juvenile prevention and truancy statutes in Chapter 984, covering children in need of services/families in need of services. The bill updates definitions and procedures, strengthens truancy intervention, requires earlier and more detailed school reporting, adds parent involvement through child study teams, allows virtual participation, and sets review timelines for shelter placement. Sponsors said the goal is prevention and family support rather than punishment, with court involvement only after school-based intervention. Members asked about school compliance, court capacity, parent accountability, and whether all counties have child study teams; the sponsors said the bill expects CSTs in every school and can escalate cases to court and, if needed, to prosecutors for noncompliant parents. Public testimony on the juvenile justice bill was supportive, including from the Department of Juvenile Justice, youth services groups, and juvenile justice advocates. In debate, members praised the modernization effort and the emphasis on early intervention and family participation, while also noting the bill’s size and suggesting further attention to attendance thresholds. The PCS for HB 1405 was then approved unanimously and reported favorable. The committee adjourned after completing its agenda.

Transcript Highlights:

• At the DI level, it gives each one of the school sites the grade bands, and then at the administrative
• took those Diné content standards in the performance objectives and laid out a pacing guide for all grade-level
• Chairman, I hope you track the kids, because if they're already not at grade level or severely below,
• Along with that, we have students who are not on grade level when they come into a grade, so there is
• There's one for each grade level. They are a part of the team, the planning team.

Transcript Highlights:

• But those students who were not reading on grade level in that time during the switch, have we, or are
• We also have our New Worlds program, that for those students who are reading below grade level, they
• And you have a kid that was on grade level in third grade, and we take the resources, and by fifth grade
• Now, if a student is identified, then once we provide that high-quality Tier 1, on-grade-level instruction
• at every every grade level.

Summary: The Appropriations Committee on Pre-K-12 Education met with a quorum and first heard a Department of Education program review on three district support programs: assistance to low-performing schools, the Florida Partnership program, and regional literacy teams (RAISE). Dr. Paul Burns described how the Bureau of School Improvement supports schools with D/F grades through regional teams, classroom observations, professional learning, and targeted funding, noting that 104 of 168 low-performing schools improved after 2022-23 and that the share of failing schools fell from 6% to 4%. He also outlined the Florida Partnership’s $4 million annual appropriation for advanced-course teacher training and student access, and the RAISE literacy program’s $5 million funding, universal/targeted/intensive supports, and progress monitoring results. Senators asked about rural participation, post-COVID reading data, parent support, and how long schools remain under monitoring after improving; Burns said rural districts can participate statewide, parents can access school and department support, and schools continue to receive monitoring after exiting low-performing status to prevent recidivism. The committee then received a presentation on the school district education foundation matching grants program from Suzanne Pridgen, who explained that the Consortium of the Florida Education Foundations administers the grants, which require private matching funds and support tutoring, literacy, STEM, career education, professional learning, books, and supplies. She said the program leverages about $1.44 in private support for every state dollar. The committee then moved to the regional education consortia, where representatives from PAEC, NEFEC, and Heartland, along with several rural superintendents, described the consortia as member-led organizations that provide economies of scale, professional learning, HR, risk management, purchasing, legal and operational support, crisis assistance, and leadership development for small and fiscally constrained districts. Superintendents from Lafayette, Holmes, Calhoun, Union, DeSoto, and Hendry counties testified that the consortia are essential because rural districts often have very small staffs, multiple-duty administrators, and limited in-house expertise. They cited support with insurance and hurricane recovery, training for new finance and HR staff, instructional coaching, CTE and leadership programs, and help with turnaround schools. Members emphasized that these districts can be high-performing despite limited resources, and several senators praised the consortia’s value. Senator Gaetz asked about additional back-office collaboration, possible regulatory relief, and FEFP issues tied to scholarship-related enrollment swings; rural superintendents responded that more local control would help. The meeting ended with a motion to adjourn, which was adopted without objection.

Transcript Highlights:

• So there is a greater potential for enrolling students at the same seventh-grade level into an Algebra
• <00:50:16.800> level not on track at meeting grade level not on track at meeting grade level
• <00:52:23.599> level they're getting access to grade level they're getting access to grade
• Philip was going to seventh grade, Miss Brown, with a 2.7 reading level.
• Now, he wasn't quite at an eighth grade reading level yet, getting ready to go into eighth grade, but

Keywords: 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• This just reading... 83% below grade level.
• This just reading... 83% below grade level, and then this year it was 93%.
• level to fourth grade.
• They have to continue to offer higher level student reading interventions through fourth grade, so...
• for fifth grade.

Keywords: 924, joint, all

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:51:02.640> level see in line 21 and 22 grade level see in line 21 and 22 grade level reading
• grade level reading proficiency.
• grade level reading not demonstrated grade level reading proficiency.<00:57:07.680> So<00:57:
• their appropriate grade level reading. their appropriate grade level reading.
• reading it at grade level means. reading it at grade level means.

Bills: HB0076, HB0102, HB0115

Keywords: annexation, landowner rights, municipal law, city planning, property, local government, artificial intelligence, synthetic sexual material, child protection, self-harm, criminal liability, cardiac emergency, defibrillator, school safety, training, public health, 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• that can't go any higher but stay at that level and they're moving from grade level to grade level,
• level equivalency with grade level proficiency.
• And where we talk about grade level equivalency, if a third grade student is on grade level, are they
• c> grade<00:55:58.880> level grade level equivalency with grade level grade level equivalency
• <00:56:07.280> level and where we talk about grade level and where we talk about grade level

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The committee first heard House Bill 44, sponsored by Representative Chris Lewis, which would create a robotics program trust fund and a robotics funding selection committee through the Kentucky Department of Education. Supporters, including Kentucky First Robotics executive director Kelly Gowen and students from Whitfield Academy, said the bill would expand hands-on robotics education in high schools, connect students to manufacturing and engineering careers, and help meet workforce needs. The proposal would fund grants for coach stipends, competition fees, kits, supplies, and related expenses, and Lewis requested a one-time $500,000 appropriation along with private contributions from manufacturers. The students demonstrated their robot and described how robotics programs teach coding, design, manufacturing, and competition skills. The committee took no questions and approved HB 44 with a favorable expression of opinion for passage on the House floor. The committee then considered House Bill 253, sponsored by Representative James Tipton, which would phase out the use of three-cueing reading instruction and require greater alignment with the science of reading. Tipton said the bill builds on the 2022 Read to Succeed law and would prohibit three cueing in public schools by the 2029-2030 school year, while also barring public university teacher prep programs from teaching it beginning in 2027-2028. He and Kentucky Department of Education officials said the bill is intended to shift instruction toward phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension, and to expand professional learning for teachers through LETRS and other options. KDE testified that enforcement would focus on support rather than punishment, using literacy coaches, regional support staff, and MTSS specialists to help districts transition. Members discussed the bill’s delayed implementation, the evidence against three cueing, and whether reading recovery should be excluded from approved interventions. Supporters cited studies and brain research they said show three cueing can hurt later reading performance, while several members emphasized the need for teacher flexibility and support. Representative Jackson noted Kentucky’s 2025 NAEP third-grade reading ranking of fourth in the nation as evidence that current efforts are helping. Representative Truett and others raised concerns about how the bill would affect classroom practice and intervention strategies, and Tipton and KDE said the goal is to align instruction with evidence-based methods rather than punish educators. The transcript ends during continued discussion of reading recovery and related instructional approaches, with no final vote on HB 253 shown in the excerpt.