IN THIS EPISODE:
- Following the announcement of the Texas Education Agency’s planned state takeover of Houston Independent School District, host Khambrel Marshall sits down with Congressman Al Green to discuss the takeover, banking stability, and calling to embrace what he calls the “Conscience Agenda” to honor those who were formerly enslaved.
U.S. Rep. Al Green (D) on HISD, banking stability, help for constituents and the Conscience Agenda
The big story of the week was the announcement by the Texas Education Agency that it plans to take over HISD as of June 1st.
Last week on this program, experts said the data does not support success in an endeavor of this size.
U.S. Rep Al Green (D) 9th, says he disagrees with the decision because of the progress made by the district in three years, but is also suspicious of Governor Abbott’s motives.
“This is a governor who is now appointing a board who will have an appointed supervisor,” he said. “The people will have very little input in terms of how these people get selected. We had an elected board and now the governor has one person who is selecting an entire school board.”
Congressman Green also says this effort by the TEA could be part of a larger effort.
“I see this voucher movement as a movement that will drain public schools of dollars because attendance is the thing that determines the dollars for public schools. So if the money goes into vouchers and the governor’s taking over, it can become a takedown.”
Congressman Green also highlighted some of the good news in the form of approximately 50 million dollars in government funding for projects in his district including:
- $5 Million - Missouri City Park & Ride
- $2 Million - Texas Children’s Hospital for facilities and equipment
- $1.9 Million - HISD for family and community engagement programs
- $1.6 Million - Hartman Middle and Alcott Elementary Safe Routes to School Project
- $1.5 Million - Project R.A.I.S.E. (Rebuilding Alliance to Inspire Sustainability)
- $1.5 Million - Sunnyside Park Capital Improvements
- $1 Million - Legacy Community Health for electronic health records initiative
Congressman Green calls for embracing the “Conscience Agenda” to honor formerly enslaved
He calls the “Conscience Agenda: our Moral Imperatives” and says it is an agenda he’s proposing in congress to acknowledge this country’s history that demeaned Africa Americans, who in turn helped make the country great.
Recognition of August 20th annually as Slavery Remembrance Day, A Congressional Gold Medal to the Enslaved are just two of the items on his agenda. You can view more details here.
For more information on this week’s Houston Newsmakers
· U.S. Rep. Al Green, (D) 9th Congressional District
· Website: https://algreen.house.gov/about