Latest / Austin Signal / Alleged outside ties shut some area schools out of voucher program

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Alleged outside ties shut some area schools out of voucher program · Austin Signal

0:08
Hundreds of private schools in Texas
0:10
are being shut out of the state's
0:11
new school voucher program because
0:13
of alleged ties to some
0:14
organizations or foreign
0:16
governments.
0:16
And that includes dozens of schools
0:18
here in the Austin area.
0:20
We'll have more about the voucher
0:21
program and its continuing rollout.
0:23
That's coming up on today's show.
0:25
The Austin Signal is a production
0:27
of KUT News, hosted by
0:29
Jerry Quijano.
0:30
Plus, hobbies can lead to rewarding
0:32
experiences, but carving out
0:34
the time to invest in one can be
0:35
tough. We're going to hear the story
0:37
of a group of skaters here in Austin
0:38
that prioritizes community and
0:40
fun despite their busy schedules.
0:42
And the executive director for Texas
0:44
Performing Arts stepped into the
0:45
role just months before the pandemic
0:47
forced shows to stop and theaters to
0:49
close.
0:50
What he's learned about the job and
0:51
the future of arts and performances
0:53
going forward, That's coming
0:55
up today on Austin Signal.
1:08
Howdy out there, and thank you for
1:10
tuning in. This is Austin
1:12
Signal.
1:13
It's Tuesday, January 20th.
1:15
Thank you for making
1:16
listener-powered public radio part
1:17
of your day.
1:19
We are glad to have you here.
1:21
56 degrees out along the
1:23
drag at one o'clock this afternoon,
1:24
and a bit of good news to start off
1:26
the show is that temperatures the
1:27
next couple of nights in Austin
1:29
won't be nearly as cold as they
1:31
have been.
1:32
We are, however, keeping an eye on
1:34
the weather that's coming our way
1:35
this weekend.
1:36
What we know for now, is
1:38
that we are getting the coldest air
1:39
of the season on Saturday and
1:41
Sunday.
1:42
The National Weather Service is
1:43
forecasting highs in the 30s and
1:45
lows in the 20s.
1:46
And with precipitation in the
1:48
forecast at the same time, the
1:49
Weather Service says there's a
1:51
chance for freezing rain Saturday
1:52
into Saturday night.
1:54
We will of course be watching the
1:56
forecast as it develops in the days
1:57
ahead and we'll keep you updated
1:59
right here on Austin Signal and
2:01
all day long over on
2:03
KUT News.
2:06
Hundreds of private schools in Texas
2:08
have so far been excluded
2:10
from the state's new school voucher
2:12
program, including dozens of schools
2:13
here in the Austin area.
2:16
For more about why that is the case,
2:18
we are joined by Isaac Yu.
2:19
He's a politics reporter at the
2:21
Austin American Statesman.
2:22
Isaac, it's great to talk with you.
2:24
Thanks for having me.
2:25
So take us back a bit.
2:27
What reason did legislators give for
2:29
vouchers when they were initially
2:30
passed into law last year.
2:31
That's right. So this was the
2:33
biggest political issue of the
2:35
last session, the 89th session.
2:37
And the idea of the
2:39
Republican proponents who wanted to
2:41
pass this legislation was to
2:43
provide more tax dollars
2:45
to families who want to
2:47
afford things like private school
2:48
tuition, homeschooling costs,
2:51
just educational expenses that fall
2:53
outside of the traditional public
2:55
school system.
2:55
Okay, and you're reporting at the
2:57
statesman, you found out that not
2:59
all private schools here in Texas
3:01
have been able to join the voucher
3:03
program. Why is that the case?
3:04
That's right.
3:05
So schools were able to apply
3:07
beginning in mid-December.
3:08
So we now have a list of schools
3:10
that have been approved.
3:12
Um, if that school is on the list
3:13
and you receive a voucher, you
3:15
can use that money to pay, um,
3:17
for that tuition at that school,
3:19
there's a category of schools and it
3:21
makes up about a third, a little
3:23
more of all the eligible
3:25
private schools that had not yet
3:26
been invited into the program.
3:29
And what we know is that it's linked
3:31
to a request
3:32
that the state comptroller whose
3:34
office is running that program has
3:37
made also last month
3:39
and that's holding up all the
3:41
schools so far.
3:42
Us a little bit more about that.
3:44
Definitely.
3:45
So it appears to be linked to
3:48
an attempt by the
3:49
Comptroller to bar certain
3:51
schools. He asked for
3:53
a ruling from the Attorney General's
3:55
office, essentially asking
3:57
if his office has the
3:59
authority required to
4:01
bar a certain school under Texas
4:03
law.
4:04
And he's Referring to two
4:06
specific kinds of schools, one is
4:09
schools that are linked to the
4:10
Chinese Communist Party, either
4:12
because they're owned or operated in
4:14
part by some sort of entity that's
4:16
linked to it.
4:17
And then the other category is
4:19
schools, you know,
4:21
Islamic schools, not as an
4:23
entire category.
4:24
The way that his request is framed
4:25
is schools that have hosted
4:28
events by the council on
4:30
American Islamic relations, which is
4:31
a major Muslim advocacy
4:33
group.
4:35
And, you know asking whether
4:37
schools that have ties to that group
4:39
are also able to be barred from the
4:41
program.
4:41
You mentioned the state comptroller
4:42
a couple of times, can you tell us
4:44
who he is and how he got into the
4:46
position that he's in right now?
4:47
Definitely the state comptroller
4:48
currently is Kelly Hancock.
4:49
He's formerly a state Senator
4:51
from the North Texas area.
4:54
He became comptroller, um,
4:56
last June, um stepping down
4:58
from his legislative seat.
5:00
Um, and he's been, you
5:02
know, acting in that position.
5:03
Um, he wasn't formally appointed
5:06
due to some kind of quirkiness in
5:07
the state law, but he's running
5:09
that office since then, um and
5:11
overseeing the rollout of the
5:13
voucher and ESA program.
5:15
And yeah, he's been there since
5:17
June.
5:17
And what have you heard from people
5:20
who work for or work with Texas
5:21
private schools about
5:24
this claim that they're trying to
5:26
prohibit these schools from
5:27
participating in the program?
5:28
You know, not, not too many people
5:30
have spoken out specifically about
5:32
that. Of course, the schools
5:33
themselves are, you
5:35
know, facing a lot of uncertainty.
5:37
It's not super clear how many
5:39
of these Islamic schools or,
5:41
um, allegedly, um
5:43
Chinese linked schools want to
5:45
participate in the program, but the
5:46
comptroller's request said that some
5:48
of them had applied outside
5:50
of that. Remember that this, that
5:52
request has now blocked, you know,
5:54
between five and 700 schools
5:56
of all kinds.
5:57
So that includes.
5:58
Special education schools, Christian
6:00
schools, and those
6:02
groups and led by the
6:04
Texas Private School Association are
6:06
pushing the Comptroller to allow
6:08
those schools to be
6:10
approved for the program as quickly
6:11
as possible.
6:13
They aren't super happy
6:15
that this, you know,
6:17
request linked to the small handful
6:19
of schools appears to be affecting
6:21
a large category.
6:22
Okay, did was there any kind of
6:24
anticipation that there might be
6:26
some some some pitfalls
6:28
when it comes to this this voucher
6:29
program here in Texas.
6:31
There were some clues
6:33
early on that this could be
6:35
a problem, you know, there were some
6:37
conservative advocates who I've
6:39
spoken to who were against the
6:41
voucher program, who
6:43
there you know from their
6:44
perspective, they were worried that
6:46
tax dollars might be going towards
6:48
certain kinds of schools,
6:50
including Islamic schools, but you
6:51
know other schools that might
6:52
promote certain, you know,
6:54
LGBTQ.
6:55
Or DEI, things like that.
6:57
And that's one major argument that
6:59
conservative opponents of school
7:01
choice have had.
7:03
It's not one that was super
7:05
thoroughly considered.
7:06
It didn't come as a
7:08
big part of the debate in the
7:09
legislature.
7:11
But I think we knew early
7:13
on that that would be something that
7:14
state leaders would have to navigate
7:16
as they rolled out this program.
7:18
Specifically here in the Austin
7:19
area, what do we know about the
7:20
schools that have been impacted?
7:21
So the schools affected are all
7:23
accredited by Cognia, which is
7:25
a nonprofit. It's the largest
7:26
private school creditor nationwide
7:28
and here in Texas,
7:30
that accredits some of these Islamic
7:32
schools that are mentioned in the
7:33
Comptroller's Request, but
7:35
also a broad swath of
7:38
other schools as well, Christian
7:39
schools, all kinds of schools.
7:41
Some examples here in Austin include
7:43
the Ross& Sounder School,
7:45
Hyde Park Montessori, and.
7:48
You know, there's also an AI school
7:49
called the Alpha School that's been
7:50
getting attention here.
7:52
You know, it's a broad category and
7:54
they're all accredited by Cognia.
7:57
It's not clear whether all of them
7:58
want to apply for the program, we
8:00
don't know that, but we do know that
8:01
they have not been invited to do so.
8:03
OK, well, we've been speaking with
8:05
Isaac Yu. He is a reporter at
8:07
the Austin American Statesman.
8:08
You can find his reporting in
8:10
our show notes and at kut.org
8:13
slash signal. One last question
8:14
before I let you get out of here
8:15
today, Isaac.
8:16
Where do we go next?
8:17
What happens next?
8:18
So families will be able to apply
8:20
for this program starting on
8:21
February 4th.
8:22
That's two weeks from now.
8:25
And this list of schools is not
8:27
complete. We know that there are
8:28
schools that want to apply that have
8:30
not been approved for this list and
8:31
they're just waiting on, you know,
8:33
are we going to be accepted into
8:34
this program?
8:35
And they don't really know what to
8:36
tell their families at this point.
8:38
And so that's what we'll be watching
8:39
over the next couple of weeks.
8:40
All right, that's Isaac Yu, a
8:42
politics reporter at the Austin
8:43
American Statesman.
8:45
Thank you for coming on the show
8:45
today. Thank you.
8:55
Most of us lead busy lives,
8:58
and that can make it difficult to
8:59
find the time for our hobbies,
9:01
you know, the things we actually
9:03
like doing.
9:04
But a group of women in Austin with
9:06
a shared interest are taking that
9:07
challenge head on, one
9:09
kick push at a time.
9:11
Texas Standard's Keyla Holmes has
9:13
more.
9:18
It's the first Wednesday in
9:20
November, and several women are
9:22
walking over to a small patch of
9:23
concrete near a bike trail in East
9:25
Austin.
9:26
I actually skated here from my house
9:28
so wouldn't have been able to do
9:30
that four months ago and yeah.
9:33
Amanda Batchelor sets up near a
9:35
painted cloth banner that reads
9:36
Austin Women's Skate and a donation
9:39
box for diapers.
9:40
Batcheler has always wanted to
9:42
skate.
9:43
She started learning about six
9:44
months ago after searching for a
9:46
women's skateboard community on
9:47
Instagram.
9:49
She found the Austin Women Skate
9:50
group and now she's among the
9:52
dozens of women who meet up twice a
9:54
month to coast.
9:55
I feel like I just kind of fell in
9:57
love with it. In your late 20s, you
9:58
just have no idea how to make
10:00
friends.
10:01
Mental health and art therapist Brie
10:03
Valdez is one of three women who
10:05
started Austin women's skate.
10:07
This past summer, the trio would
10:09
grab their boards and meet at
10:10
Mueller Park for a cruise.
10:13
But eventually, they realized,
10:15
if they were enjoying their informal
10:17
skate meetups, others probably
10:19
would too.
10:20
We saw kind of like a need in the
10:21
community for
10:23
women's skaters and a space for
10:25
women skaters to feel really
10:26
supported.
10:27
Every first and third Wednesday,
10:29
the group takes a break from their
10:31
jobs and responsibilities to let
10:33
loose and skate with one another.
10:35
This audio is from two of the
10:36
group's recent meetups.
10:38
As soon as I get on the skateboard,
10:40
I stop thinking about anything else.
10:42
As members erupt into chatter
10:44
and laughter and place their diaper
10:46
donations into a box near the extra
10:48
skateboards, organizer Carolina
10:50
Montgomery gives a little pep talk.
10:53
Have fun, be safe,
10:55
be kind, and just remember this is
10:57
space for everyone.
10:59
At every meetup, everyone introduces
11:00
themselves and sometimes
11:02
answers an icebreaker.
11:05
This evening, the group shared what
11:06
they had for lunch, gripping their
11:08
boards, waiting to disperse.
11:11
I'm Chelsea.
11:12
I had green orzo
11:14
risotto with
11:16
blended broccoli.
11:18
Some women have knee pads and
11:20
helmets on.
11:21
Others just have the clothes on
11:23
their backs.
11:25
Organizer Carolina Montgomery likes
11:27
to wear gear because it helps her to
11:29
feel more confident.
11:30
As a skater in her early 40s,
11:32
she believes that skateboarding has
11:34
taught her to take more risks.
11:36
I think that it's made me brave,
11:38
to be able to take chances, to take
11:40
up space and to be okay taking
11:42
up space, even if I'm not
11:44
the best skater, or if I am just
11:46
a beginner, or I don't do tricks, or
11:48
I'm so scared, it's okay
11:50
to take space.
11:52
Herrera grew up watching her older
11:54
male cousins skate.
11:55
But as a girl growing up in the 90s,
11:57
she felt like there wasn't much
11:59
representation in the.
12:00
Not seeing anybody like
12:02
me doing skateboarding made
12:04
me really nervous, made me really
12:05
scared.
12:06
Herrera does her best to make time
12:08
to skate because for her
12:10
it's like she's finally free to
12:12
do what she's always wanted.
12:14
I played all the Tony Hawk games and
12:17
so like I said I watched videos I
12:19
read some of the magazines and
12:21
so it definitely felt like giving my
12:24
child self something
12:26
back.
12:30
After taking a group photo,
12:32
the women all placed their feet on
12:33
the tails of their boards,
12:35
found their balance, and pushed
12:37
themselves down the bike trail.
12:41
I'm Keyla Holmes for the Texas
12:43
Standard.
13:01
Great radio story they're full
13:03
of some awesome sounds and
13:05
you know listening to that story
13:07
made me think about the hobbies
13:09
I have here in Austin you know
13:11
going to watch movies climbing rocks
13:13
and doors everywhere I go
13:15
to try and find a hobby there's
13:16
always one constant somebody
13:19
in that building is wearing a KUT
13:20
or KUTX t-shirt so
13:23
I think you know listening to
13:25
listener powered public radio right
13:26
here on KUT news That is
13:28
a bit of a hobby and we have plenty
13:30
of people who partake and support
13:32
and we're glad you join us
13:34
every single day, but especially
13:35
right now here on Austin
13:37
Signal, this show is made possible
13:39
because of the work of the trusted
13:40
reporters and music aficionados
13:42
here at KUT News, KUTX,
13:45
and Texas Standard and we've got
13:46
more coming up from them for
13:48
you after this break.
13:50
This is Austin Signal.
14:00
This is Austin Signal.
14:02
Thank you for making us part of your
14:04
Tuesday.
14:05
Think back on what you were doing
14:07
right about now six years
14:09
ago.
14:09
Whatever you were up to, you likely
14:11
weren't considering how the COVID-19
14:13
pandemic would affect almost every
14:16
facet of your life.
14:17
Now, imagine starting a new job
14:19
in a new city with all
14:21
of that unfolding in the background.
14:24
Heck, here in Austin, I bet there's
14:25
a few of you out there who don't
14:27
even have to imagine much about that
14:29
scenario. It was certainly true
14:31
for Bob Bursey, the executive
14:33
and artistic director for Texas
14:34
Performing Arts.
14:35
They operate the Bass Concert Hall
14:37
and McCullough Theater.
14:38
He started his new job January
14:40
1st, 2020.
14:43
Needless to say, the pandemic
14:44
required Bursey to pivot from
14:46
some of the plans that he might've
14:47
had coming into the gig.
14:49
Bursey spoke with KUT's Jennifer
14:51
Stayton on the stage of the
14:52
McCulloch Theater about how COVID
14:54
impacted TPA back then and
14:57
what the future looks like for them.
14:59
And the arts going forward.
15:02
Taking the lead of a big
15:03
organization on the precipice of
15:05
a moment of great disruption really
15:10
set the tone for so
15:12
much of what we've been able to
15:13
accomplish since then.
15:15
When it became clear that we weren't
15:16
going to be able to do what we
15:19
normally could do or normally how we
15:21
serve our community, we tried to
15:23
find other things, other ways
15:25
to make an impact.
15:26
So we...
15:27
Did a renovation of the facility
15:29
that was bigger and deeper than what
15:30
would have otherwise been possible
15:32
and Bass Concert Hall made a lot of
15:34
improvements. It also gave us
15:35
an opportunity to look more locally
15:37
for the artists that we engage
15:39
with. So organizations like
15:42
ours were founded in
15:44
the middle of the last century on
15:45
the promise of bringing in the most
15:47
interesting things from around
15:49
the country and around the world.
15:51
And that's still core to what we do
15:53
and very important to us.
15:54
But for many organizations
15:56
like us.
15:57
Did that at the exclusion of
16:00
great artists and amazing projects
16:02
in your own backyard.
16:04
And so during COVID, we worked with
16:06
a lot of Austin-based artists to
16:08
provide creative residencies where
16:10
they could safely develop projects
16:12
in our studios and on our stages
16:13
that then went on to be
16:15
presented and performed around the
16:17
country later.
16:18
Is that something that has stayed
16:20
with Texas Performing Arts since
16:22
COVID days?
16:24
Yes, we've added that aspect
16:26
to our program as creative
16:27
development and residency for
16:29
Austin-based artists.
16:31
The pandemic also brought
16:33
into question many of the ways
16:35
that big organizations worked
16:37
and showed the value of partnership.
16:40
And that's something that stayed
16:41
with us as well
16:43
at TPA, that we
16:45
can accomplish ambitious things,
16:48
life-changing projects, impactful.
16:51
Educational initiatives when we work
16:53
together with other organizations.
16:55
How does the commercial viability
16:58
of an artist or arts
17:00
group coming to town sort
17:02
of balance with maybe artistic
17:04
experimentation or something new?
17:07
Do you have to go to sort of
17:08
something familiar that you know
17:10
will fill seats?
17:11
Or do you feel like you've got some
17:12
room to try something new or
17:14
experiment? How do you kind of make
17:15
that calculation?
17:17
We've been very intentional about
17:19
doing all of the above to
17:21
have things that will fill
17:23
Bass Concert Hall at 3,000 seats
17:25
night after night and also
17:27
to do things in a
17:29
rehearsal studio that maybe 12
17:30
people a night can see
17:32
over the course of a week.
17:34
We're one of the only places in the
17:36
country that's able to embrace that
17:38
huge wide range of programming
17:40
from artists that you have heard
17:42
of and are really familiar with
17:44
their work, popular entertainers
17:46
to major touring productions
17:48
to things that are just being
17:50
developed and are experimenting
17:51
and trying to get off the ground.
17:53
Because we have different size
17:55
spaces, because we're part of
17:57
an institution of research and
17:59
learning, we're able to embrace
18:00
all of those missions.
18:02
Texas Performing Arts operates
18:04
financially self-sustaining,
18:07
but is very much informed
18:09
by the values of
18:11
the University of Learning,
18:13
Research and Education.
18:15
So anytime you come to see a
18:16
performance here.
18:17
The artist may have gone and done a
18:19
master class with students
18:21
at UT, they may
18:23
have gone out and visited with a
18:24
local high school or elementary
18:26
or middle school, or there may be
18:28
students coming from the community
18:30
to that performance.
18:32
Can just talk a little bit about
18:34
what the arts can do for
18:36
people, especially maybe
18:38
when times are challenging in
18:40
a host of different ways.
18:42
I personally find it a source of
18:43
inspiration, and I love gathering
18:46
together with people in the
18:47
same space. Nothing makes me happier
18:50
than to see our lobby
18:52
just full of folks who are
18:54
all there because they want to
18:55
be, to have an experience
18:57
that they've chosen to have, that
18:59
they're going to be inspired,
19:02
entertained, engaged,
19:04
maybe challenged by.
19:05
That's certainly what motivates me
19:07
and keeps us going, and I
19:09
think it's a real source of
19:10
optimism.
19:11
Right now, that we get to see
19:13
artists who really represent
19:15
the idea of excellence,
19:17
that they have trained and
19:19
crafted for many, many years in
19:21
order to be able to present what
19:23
they do.
19:24
What do you see as the biggest
19:26
challenge for Texas Performing
19:28
Arts and maybe sort of
19:30
arts in general moving forward?
19:34
There is so much
19:36
choice out there now for
19:38
us as audience members.
19:40
We have essentially unlimited
19:42
access to digital content.
19:45
In our city, there's always so
19:47
much going on.
19:49
And making sure that we continue
19:51
to offer really singular,
19:55
memorable, sometimes
19:56
once-in-a-lifetime experiences
19:58
is a big priority for
20:00
us.
20:01
And keeping up with the
20:02
pace of change that tastes are
20:05
rapidly evolving
20:07
and folks' interests are very,
20:09
very wide now because we can
20:11
self-curate in a way
20:13
that we were never able to.
20:15
It's a challenge, it's also hopeful
20:16
because as life
20:18
is increasingly digital,
20:20
to have those moments of being in
20:22
real space, in real time,
20:24
together with fellow audience
20:26
members, sharing an experience
20:28
given to us by a performer.
20:30
Becomes I think even more special
20:32
right now.
20:33
So I see it both as a challenge and
20:35
as an opportunity.
20:37
Is there an especially memorable
20:39
show or performance that you've
20:41
experienced in your time here that
20:43
really stands out for you as
20:44
something that really struck you
20:46
or has stuck with you in
20:48
your times here so far?
20:50
Too many to name,
20:52
clearly. I'll offer a few.
20:55
One is anything that I get to see
20:56
with my family, especially with my
20:58
kids, and introduce them
21:00
to the American
21:02
cultural tradition.
21:03
We have so many art forms
21:05
that come from America,
21:07
be it jazz or modern
21:10
dance or Broadway.
21:12
To see a Broadway show with my kid
21:14
and introduce to that cultural
21:16
lineage is really special.
21:19
I also love the
21:21
experimental work that we get to
21:23
do. We did an extraordinary
21:25
project early in my time
21:27
here with a New York-based
21:29
artist called Robin Frohart,
21:31
a project called The Plastic Bag
21:32
Store where she transformed a
21:34
warehouse in Austin into
21:36
a museum of
21:38
incredible artifacts all
21:40
created with plastic bags.
21:43
And those kind of out of the
21:45
box.
21:45
Non-traditional projects are really,
21:47
really special to me.
21:49
Bob Bursey is executive and
21:51
artistic director of Texas
21:53
Performing Arts.
21:54
Bob, thank you so much for chatting
21:55
with me on the stage at the
21:56
McCullough Theater.
21:57
It's been great.
21:58
It's been great to have you,
21:59
Jennifer. Thank you so much.
22:06
And thank you out there for
22:08
tuning in on this Tuesday.
22:10
Glad you're spinning part of it here
22:12
with listener-powered public
22:14
radio.
22:15
We are KUT News 90.5
22:17
on the KUT app.
22:19
And we have more from our show
22:21
online at kut.org
22:24
slash signal.
22:25
And please, if you listen to the
22:26
show as a podcast, please subscribe,
22:29
leave a review, and check the show
22:31
notes for all the reporting that we
22:33
brought to you today and that we
22:34
bring to you every day.
22:36
Thank you to Keyla Holmes,
22:38
to Isaac Yu, and to Jennifer Stayton
22:40
and Bob Bursey with their help
22:41
making today's episode happen.
22:44
Kristen Cabrera is our managing
22:46
producer.
22:47
Rayna Sevilla is our technical
22:49
director. I'm Jerry Quijano.
22:51
Austin Signal will be back tomorrow,
22:53
and we'll talk to you then.
22:54
Have a great day.