Austin, TX

Travis County to help low-income families pay for child care

Published

1 hour ago

November 14, 2024

Travis County to help low-income families pay for child care

AUSTIN, Texas — It’s Spanish only for the kids enrolled at Cielito Lindo Spanish Immersion Preschool. Maria Dominguez owns three Spanish immersion preschools in Travis County.

“We focus on the social and emotional part of child development,” said Dominguez.

The average cost of child care in Texas is $1,300 per month, and while Cielito Lindo offers scholarships, many families still can’t afford it.

What You Need To Know

Travis County voters approved Proposition A, a property tax increase which is expected to generate $75 million to create nearly 2,000 new child care slots and nearly 4,000 new after-school and summer programming slots

The average cost of child care in Texas is $1,300 per month

Child care advocates suggest it will cost $90 million per year in state funding to get at least 10,000 kids off the waitlist

“Even for those kids that we do receive assistance, they’re not paying the full amount that we charge a month. We’re constantly trying to make up for that amount because, again, we still have to pay for a facility for teachers being able to provide competitive wages because they deserve it,” said Dominguez.

Last week, Travis County voters approved Proposition A, a property tax increase which is expected to generate $75 million to create nearly 2,000 new child care slots and nearly 4,000 new after-school and summer programming slots for school-age children. But there are nearly $80,000 children on a waitlist for subsidized care in Texas with an estimated wait time of two years.

Child care advocates suggest it will cost $90 million per year in state funding to get at least 10,000 kids off the waitlist.

“We have seen voters say over and over again that this is a priority,” said David Feigen with Texans Care for Children.

During the last legislative session, lawmakers defeated a $2 billion proposal to step in and fund child care providers. And now that federal pandemic-era funds are gone, policy experts say state lawmakers need to act.

“If we don’t provide this funding, we will see more parents leaving the workforce, more businesses struggling to recruit and retain staff, more children in low-quality settings,” said Feigen.

Travis County Judge Andy Brown hopes the passage of proposition A sends a message to state leaders to act.

“If we are figure out ways to provide that, like we’re doing here in Travis County, it’s going to help our economy,” said Brown.

But some representatives expressed uncertainty about allocations this time around during an interim House hearing.

“We don’t always know, in the environment, [if we] can keep funding going up because there are other priorities for our states,” said Republican Rep. Angie Chen Button.

The priority for child care providers will always be the kids.

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Austin, TX

Carlton, Holle score 15 apiece to lead No. 4 Texas to a 95-58 win over Lamar

Published

9 hours ago

November 14, 2024

Press Room

Carlton, Holle score 15 apiece to lead No. 4 Texas to a 95-58 win over Lamar

AUSTIN, Texas — Freshman Justice Carlton and senior Shay Holle each scored 15 points and No. 4 Texas defeated Lamar 95-58 Wednesday night.

Holle converted 3 of 4 3-point attempts. Carlton added three steals.

Madison Booker of Texas (2-0), an AP preseason All-American, missed the game with a sore hamstring and her status is day-to-day.

Freshman Jordan Lee started in place of Booker and scored 12 points. Bryanna Preston, also a freshman, added nine points, four assists and two steals.

Point guard Rori Harmon finished with eight points, eight assists and five steals in 18 minutes. Harmon, who missed the final 26 games last season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament, limped off the court in the third quarter after tweaking her ankle. She later returned to the game.

Akasha Davis led Lamar (1-1) with 14 points. Sabria Dean scored 13.

Takeaways

Lamar: The Cardinals, defending Southland Conference regular-season champions, trailed Texas 51-14 at halftime. The Cardinals matched the Longhorns’ 44 points in the second half.

Texas: Laila Phelia, an all-Big Ten guard at Michigan last season, made her debut for Texas. She had eight points in 21 minutes as a reserve. Phelia averaged nearly 17 points last season.

Key moment

Texas outscored Lamar 20-3 during the final 7:12 of the first quarter. The Cardinals made only three free throws during the span. The Longhorns, using full-court defensive pressure, coaxed 10 turnovers in the quarter, seven of them steals. Harmon made four of the steals.

Key stat

Lamar committed 22 turnovers in the first half, allowing Texas to take a 51-14 lead at the break. The Longhorns made 14 steals in the half.

Up next

Lamar plays at SMU on Nov. 22, and Texas is at DePaul on Sunday.

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Austin, TX

Texas Longhorns Men’s Basketball Signs 4-Star Top-50 2025 Recruit

Published

16 hours ago

November 13, 2024

Press Room

Texas Longhorns Men’s Basketball Signs 4-Star Top-50 2025 Recruit

AUSTIN — Texas men’s basketball signed four star top-50 prospect John Clark on National Signing Day.

Houston native Clark is a 6 ft 9 in forward who plays at Link Academy in Missouri, previously playing at Klein Cain High School from his freshman to junior season. Clark is ranked as a four-star recruit, the No. 37 overall prospect by 247 Sports Composite, No. 38 by On3, No. 40 by ESPN, and No. 42 by Rivals.

“John Clark brings a unique blend of finesse and power to the court and the kind of versatility that’s crucial to succeed in the SEC,” said recruiting analyst Blue Zertuche of Great American Shoot-Out, per media release. “He can score with touch around the rim but isn’t afraid to use his physicality when needed. John’s skill set has shown consistent growth over the past few years. Playing against top-tier, athletic competition in the SEC will only accelerate his development, helping him refine his game even further.”

This is the second consecutive year the Longhorns recruit out of Link Academy, the latest being star forward Tre Johnson. The boarding school in Branson, Mo. is known for its sports teams, specifically its basketball program, which won the National Championship in 2023.

As a junior at Klein Cain, Clark averaged 17.8 points and 13.1 rebounds per game while converting 61 percent from the floor, leading all 6A players in Texas in rebounds per game and double-doubles with 22.

His list of honors includes an All-Adidas Performer recognition on the 2024 Adidas 3SSB circuit this past summer while competing for T.J. Ford Elite and a spot on the All-Greater Houston Boys Basketball second team by the Houston Chronicle.

Clark is the first signing for the Longhorns in this recruiting cycle.

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Austin, TX

Thousands of bills filed for 2025 Texas legislative session

Published

24 hours ago

November 13, 2024

Press Room

Thousands of bills filed for 2025 Texas legislative session

AUSTIN, Texas — True to tradition, Democratic Sen. Judith Zaffirini, dean of the Texas Senate, this week filed the first Senate bill ahead of the 89th Texas legislative session.

What You Need To Know

State lawmakers have filed thousands of bills ahead of next year’s 89th legislative session

Democrats and Republicans are prioritizing education, but in different ways

Democratic Sen. Judith Zaffirini reintroduced a bill that would allocate state funds to provide free pre-K. Meanwhile, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott continues to make school vouchers his priority

Republican lawmakers are also focused on a number of bills involving border security, including one that would prohibit undocumented immigrants from receiving in-state tuition by requiring a university to notify law enforcement of undocumented students

“Before a session is over, we’re already working for the next session,” Zaffirini said.

The first 40 bills in the Senate are reserved for the lieutenant governor’s priorities. Zaffirini’s Senate Bills 41 to 74 have a large focus on education. She reintroduced a bill that would allocate state funds to provide free pre-kindergarten to families.

“The reason I keep filing is that I believe so strongly in it and that times change, people change, situations change,” Zaffirini said.

Education is a priority for many Democrats in the lower chamber. Rep. Mary González introduced multiple bills that focus on providing quality education from early childhood through higher education.

“I really think of all my bills as a birth through career type of agenda. So we have everything from inclusive child care to exploring the ways in which special education is addressed in higher education,” González said.

Education is a large priority for both parties, though many Republicans support the idea of school vouchers to allocate taxpayer dollars towards private schools.

Republican Gov. Greg Abbott said last week that private school vouchers are his priority. His preferred bill has not been filed but is expected to be debated in the first 60 days of the session during which only his priorities are taken up.

This year, college students across the state spoke out against the law that removed diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) offices from their campuses. Democratic Rep. John Bucy filed a bill to repeal the ban while Republican Rep. Carl Tepper wants to take it one step further.

“We just want to put everyone on a level playing field,” Tepper said.

He filed a bill to ban DEI offices and initiatives from government entities. He expects this bill to be successful.

“The offices of diversity, equity and inclusion, which I think is a misnomer, they were really weaponized to be sort of a reverse discrimination against Asians or white people and others, and showing favoritism of some races over others and certainly sexual orientation as well,” Tepper said.

Republican lawmakers are also focused on a number of bills involving border security.

Rep. Terri Leo-Wilson filed a bill in the House to prohibit undocumented immigrants from receiving in-state tuition by requiring a university to notify law enforcement of undocumented students.

She was unavailable for an interview but said in a statement: “This legislation is a top priority of the Texas GOP, and it honors the message Texas voters delivered when they elected me and other like-minded conservatives to the Texas House.”

Lawmakers will gavel in January. Zaffirini — who has never missed a vote during her tenure — is looking forward to the first debate.

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