HOUSTON — A massive plume of dust from Africa’s Saharan Desert is blowing across the entire Atlantic Ocean this week, set to reach the shores of Florida and Texas in the coming days and casting a haze over typically blue skies.

The plume is currently forecast to skirt South Florida late Friday night into early Saturday morning, then push into the Gulf of Mexico over the weekend.

Eventually, the plume is forecast to move into Southeast Texas Sunday into Monday, with Corpus Christi and perhaps Houston likely to see some of the effects.

Coastal communities along the Florida Peninsula and the Gulf Coast are accustomed to seeing plumes of Saharan dust over the summer, which can impact air quality, produce colorful sunrises and sunsets, and reduce the chances of precipitation.

182 million tons of dust a year carried away from Africa

As daily triple-digit heat bakes the Saharan Desert, hot, dry air rises from the surface and carries fine particles of dust from the sands. That dust-laden air climbs to the highest reaches of the atmosphere, where winds called the Easterlies or Trade Winds (blowing from east to west) carry that dust about 3,000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean into the Western Hemisphere in what’s known as the Saharan Air Layer (SAL).

5 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE SAHARAN DUST PLUME

According to NASA, about 182 million tons of dust leave Africa every year, though that amount can vary depending on the amount of rainfall south of the Sahara region.

Depending on the amount of dust being carried by the plume, air quality can be drastically affected. This means that people who have certain types of breathing problems can experience difficulty. People in the path of the plume can also experience eye, nose and throat irritation because of the fine dust particles in the air, according to WebMD.

The dry air from the hot, sandy desert also works to suppress tropical development and significant plumes of dust and dry air are common in the Atlantic during the first two and a half months of the hurricane season.

However, the current situation is a bit unusual in that there is quite a bit of tropical activity percolating in the Atlantic even with a significant dust layer.

Invest 95L and another tropical disturbance just to its east are holding positions just south of the dust layer, and are feeding off available moisture to their south to skirt the edges of the dust layer as they trek west. 

However, the dust layer may become an important variable in the storms’ future development depending on their track.

Every year, the State Board of Education (SBOE) approves new charter schools following a comprehensive application, review, and public hearing process that culminates in late June. The commissioner of education also approves dozens of new charter schools through the charter expansion amendment process each year, a process which lacks SBOE input and involves minimal accountability and transparency with no public notice or hearings. 

To support SBOE members in making informed decisions about approving or vetoing new charter applications, Texas AFT collaborates with a broad coalition of public education advocates to analyze Texas Education Agency (TEA) data on school districts’ finances, enrollment, transfers, and cost of recapture. The rigorous analysis we provide to SBOE members aims to: 

• Estimate the current revenue loss experienced by school districts within new charters’ proposed geographic boundaries due to students transferring from their home school districts to charter schools (“charter transfers out” or “charter transfers”). 

• Project the additional estimated revenue loss these districts would face if new charters were approved based on their requested maximum enrollment. 

• Connect charter expansion with other relevant fiscal impacts, such as districts’ costs of recapture. Every new charter student increases districts’ recapture payments to the state that fund charter schools. 

This data-driven approach not only aids SBOE decision-making but also supports local advocacy efforts. School district officials, parents, educators, and community organizations use this information to voice their concerns to the SBOE, especially in districts facing rapid charter school expansion and its negative fiscal impacts. Across Texas, charter expansion is contributing to growing budget deficits, forcing many districts to consider closing neighborhood schools and holding Voter Approval Tax Rate Elections (VATREs) to balance their budgets. 

In response to public education stakeholders from across the state voicing their concerns, the SBOE vetoed two of the five Generation 29 charter applications in its preliminary vote on Wednesday, June 26, including two of the three new charters that our union has been most concerned about. One of the proposed charters was to be located within Arlington ISD, the school district with the ninth highest total estimated loss of revenue to charter transfers from the 2019-2020 through the 2023-2024 school year. These results were upheld in the final vote on Friday, June 28. 

Texas AFT extends the use of this district-level data to our legislative advocacy. During legislative sessions and the interims between them, we meet with current and prospective Texas Legislature members to discuss public education advocates’ concerns about charter school expansion and share data on how expansion affects the school districts they represent. This data-driven approach is effective to demonstrate the fiscal impact of charter schools even among legislators who were initially unconcerned about charter expansion. These hard facts help counter misleading claims made by charter school marketing campaigns and the many well-funded lobbyists employed by the charter industry. 

Detailed analyses of charter expansion’s fiscal impact on affected school districts can be found on our website. The results of our updated analysis on estimated revenue loss due to charter transfers are alarming. School districts statewide are experiencing a large and growing drain on their resources due directly to charter expansion, as charters enrolled about 8 percent of Texas students (ADA) in FY 2023 but received about 20% of Foundation School Program state aid for public education. 

Major urban districts like Houston ISD and Dallas ISD continue to experience significant fiscal impacts due to unlimited charter expansion, while smaller school districts have seen a comparatively small number of charter transfers translate into a large impact on their budgets. School districts in the Rio Grande Valley and the Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio, El Paso, and Austin areas have seen the most charter expansion over the past several years. Charter schools are rapidly expanding into rural Texas as well. 

These figures represent a significant financial burden, diverting resources that could otherwise enhance educational services and student experiences in public schools. The scope of this issue is expanding, as evidenced by the increasing number of affected districts and the rising total estimated revenue losses: 

• 2019-2020: $2.82 billion (at least 297 districts affected) 

• 2020-2021: $3.25 billion (at least 309 districts affected) 

• 2021-2022: $3.32 billion (at least 312 districts affected) 

• 2022-2023: $3.56 billion (at least 322 districts affected) 

• 2023-2024: $3.60 billion (at least 325 districts affected) 

When considering these figures, it is also important to realize that the number of charter transfers, total estimated revenue loss, and tally of affected districts are undercounts because the number of charter transfers out from a school district are sometimes not available (i.e. masked) to comply with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Masked numbers are typically small although larger numbers may be masked to prevent imputation. 

However, the available data reveals a growing financial strain on public education resources: 

• The number of districts experiencing revenue loss due to charter transfers increased from at least 297 in 2019-2020 to at least 325 in 2023-2024. 

• At least 377 districts have faced some level of revenue loss due to charter transfers over the five-year period. 

The implications of these findings extend beyond district finances to the communities they serve. The growing financial pressure could lead to: 

• Increased class sizes, layoffs, and cuts to pay and benefits as districts struggle to balance budgets without necessary funding. 

• Reductions in extracurricular and academic programs, particularly those serving economically disadvantaged communities where charter expansion has been most prevalent. 

• Potential school closures, which have devastating effects on local communities and economies, leading to longer commutes for students and job losses for educators and support staff. 

The trends of increasing revenue losses and the broadening impact across more districts are unsustainable and demand immediate attention from policymakers. Action is needed to mitigate further adverse effects on public schools and ensure a more equitable approach to public and charter school funding. The data clearly shows that the financial viability of many districts is at risk, which has severe implications for educational quality and equity across the state. 

These stark realities underscore the need for robust, data-driven discussions among policymakers, educators, and community stakeholders. As we advocate for a more equitable approach, we must consider: 

• Implementing a more rigorous approval process for new charter schools and expansions, with greater emphasis on their potential impact on existing public schools and taxpayers. 

• Developing funding mechanisms that do not disproportionately disadvantage public school districts when students transfer to charter schools or create a funding advantage for charters. 

• Increasing transparency in charter school operations and finances to ensure they are held to the same standards of accountability as public schools. 

• Investing in public schools to enhance their ability to meet diverse student needs, reducing the perceived need for inefficient, parallel systems such as charter schools or private school vouchers. 

• Establishing a moratorium on new charter schools and on the expansion of existing charter school networks through charter expansion amendments. 

• Conducting a comprehensive study of charter school impact on public education, including the fiscal impact on public school districts, the state budget, students, school employees, and taxpayers. 

Texas AFT remains committed to using data-driven advocacy to protect and strengthen our public education system. We call on all stakeholders – legislators, educators, parents, and community members – to engage in this critical conversation about the future of public education in Texas. By working together and making informed decisions based on comprehensive data, we can ensure that all Texas students have access to high-quality education without compromising the financial stability of our public school districts. 

The challenge before us is significant, but with continued advocacy and collaboration, we can work towards a more equitable and sustainable educational landscape for all Texas students to thrive.  

Kinky Friedman, the cigar-chomping, mustachioed Texan country singer and mystery novelist whose body of work often seemed like the un-kosher marriage of the Borscht Belt and the Bible Belt, died June 27 from complications of Parkinson’s disease. He was 79.

As frontman for the flamboyant 1970s country group Kinky Friedman and the Texas Jewboys, he was notorious for satirical songs such as “They Don’t Make Jews Like Jesus Anymore,” a raucous sendup of racism, and “Get Your Biscuits in the Oven and Your Buns in Bed,” which poked fun at feminism.

He could also turn serious, with songs dealing with social issues such as abortion and commercialism. His 1973 song “Ride ’em Jewboy” is a haunting elegy on the Holocaust, recorded by Willie Nelson and sung in concert by Bob Dylan. The lyrics transform cowboy cliches into a rumination on Hitler’s victims:

Now the smoke from camps a-rising

See the helpless creatures on their way

Hey, old pal, ain’t it surprising

How far you can go before you stay?

The Jewboys broke up in the mid-1970s and Friedman spent much of the next decade in a haze of drugs. In the mid-1980s he cleaned up and began writing a series of successful, raunchy, comic mystery novels whose main character is himself. He wrote more than 20 books, all on a manual typewriter.

https://youtu.be/uBewkqSdehQ

One reviewer, the actress and author Fannie Flagg, described his writing as “Raymond Chandler on drugs, if Chandler had possessed a tremendous sense of humor.”

In 2006 he ran for governor of Texas, looking to unseat incumbent Republican Rick Perry in a bid that went from joking to serious. His campaign material included a 13-inch talking action figure and bumper stickers that read, “My governor is a Jewish cowboy.” His official campaign slogan was  “Why the hell not?” He considered himself tough on immigration, pro-choice, anti-capital punishment and a proponent of alternative fuels.

In time, his campaign gathered force as a serious quest to shake up Texas politics, break down traditional party machines and reach out to a dramatically disaffected electorate.

“In the last election for governor, only 29% of eligible voters went to the polls,” Friedman, known as “the Kinkster,” told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that year. “Seventy-one percent didn’t vote — they didn’t like the choice between paper and plastic.”

In the end, Friedman placed fourth in the six-person race, receiving 12.6% of the vote.

The origins of Kinky Friedman

Born Richard Samet Friedman in Chicago in 1944, he moved with his parents to Texas as a baby and earned his nickname in college from his curly hair. His parents were educators who ran a summer camp for mainly Jewish children at Echo Hill Ranch, the 400-acre spread where Friedman would come to live in a small but rambling lodge.

“We had services every Friday night, and Kinky would play the guitar,” Ellen St. Clair, who spent four summers at Echo Hill, told JTA in 2006.

The property is also home to the Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch, a home and adoption center for abused and abandoned dogs that Friedman helped found.

He attended the University of Texas at Austin, where he majored in psychology. Friedman proudly recalled that during their time as members of the Jewish Tau Delta Phi fraternity he and a friend, Nathan “Chinga” Chavin, tried to admit African-American students, an effort that was ultimately thwarted.

After graduating in 1966,  he served in the Peace Corps in Borneo. After returning from the Peace Corps, he formed Kinky Friedman and the Texas Jewboys, at a time when hybrid “country rock” bands — including The Band, the Eagles and Buffalo Springfield — were rising up the charts. The Jewboys drew a cult following — and occasional protests, as when the National Organization for Women awarded Friedman its “Male Chauvinist Pig Award” in 1973.

In early 1976, he joined Dylan on the second leg of the Rolling Thunder Revue tour. Friedman claimed to have been the first “full-blooded” Jew to take the stage at the Grand Ole Opry.

Friedman would cite Mark Twain and the humorist Will Rogers as his heroes, and the inevitable comparisons were not far off.

“These days,” he once said, “there are many people around the world who listen to the songs that made me infamous and read the books that made me respectable.”