Robert Sanborn, Ed.D. What Works in Texas… and What Needs to Change

What Works

America’s “Top State for Business” in 2010 Texas is the nation’s number one producer of oil, gas and refined chemical products and a leader in aerospace and aviation Texas is a top-ranked global destination for foreign direct investment Texas’ unemployment rate has been at or below the national rate for 45 consecutive months Economic Opportunity

The population of Texas is approximately 50% minority Latinos are expected to comprise the largest ethnic group in Texas by 2020 Texas leads the nation in population diversity, even in rural Texas, due to the growing Latino population Latino students account for the largest percentage of public school enrollment (49%), followed by White students (33%) Diversity

Entrepreneurial Spirit “Texas, at a lot of levels, is very fertile ground for education reform and for entrepreneurship in education…there’s something in the Texan DNA that allows entrepreneurship to happen.” - Mike Feinberg, co-founder of KIPP Robust charter school movement o Texas is home to 10% of the nation’s charters o Only two states, Arizona and California, have more charter schools than Texas

What Needs to Change

Child Poverty 49% of Texas’ children live at or near poverty Prevalence of child poverty is times greater among Texas’ African American and Latino children than among White children Only three states - New Mexico, Mississippi, and Arkansas - have a higher proportion of children in/near poverty

Texas ranked last in children’s health insurance coverage in 2008, with 19% of children uninsured 24% of children live in households that were food insecure at some point during the year o On an average day, more than 1.7 million Texas students who qualify for a free or reduced-price breakfast are not participating Access to Health/Nutrition

Texas ranks last in the nation in the percentage of adults with high school diplomas Only 79.6% of Texans have a high school diploma In Texas, more than one in three students never finish high school Estimated cost to the state: $9.6 billion for each class of dropouts Educational Access

L.A. 96 Chicago 42 N.Y.C. 62 Houston 11 Texas ranks 39 th in postsecondary enrollment among year olds.

Panel Discussions What Works in Texas… and What Needs to Change