By Catie George, Director, Communications & Storytelling
The Dallas Regional Chamber (DRC) hosted its annual State of Public Education, presented by Toyota North America and The Commit Partnership, Wednesday, Sept. 17, at the Arts District Mansion. Subject matter experts discussed challenges and opportunities facing public education ahead of the 89th Texas Legislative Session in 2025. Below are some main points from their discussions.
Schools need high-quality instructional materials and educational initiatives
In a modernizing economy, education must evolve to address post-graduation needs.
“With the rapid pace of evolution in our industry, and in all industries across the world, preparing the workforce for the jobs of tomorrow is our obligation. We can’t fail the next generations,” said Toyota Motor North America’s Director of Government Affairs Lori McMahon.
The more schools can prepare well-educated students, the more likely they will become financially independent and successful.
“All [post-secondary credentials] have been shown to command a significant wage premium,” said Commit Partnership President Miguel Solis. “That makes it more likely that those young people can support themselves and their families. The challenge is that currently, only a fraction of our K-12 students attain a post-secondary degree.”
Therefore, schools must receive quality educational materials to adequately prepare students for life after high school graduation.
“If school is going to be the great equalizer, we need make sure that every decision that we make is the most evidence-based and it equips the most of our kids for the journeys and rigors of modern America,” said Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath. “We’ve got to get high-quality instructional materials [into] the hands of our teachers… That’s exactly what’s happening in schools now in all of Texas because of something from [Representative] Brad Buckley: [he] passed a game-changing law to ensure that our teachers have access to the best curriculum resources possible.”
That begins with grade-level content. A study conducted by the Texas Education Agency found that fewer than 1 in 5 Texas classrooms were using lessons on or above grade level. A new state law approved by the Texas legislature in 2023 provides school districts with the option to utilize a pool of centralized curricula to ensure classroom materials meet grade-level rigor.
School performance should be measured
Yearly standardized testing helps show how students are shaping up against state standards and illustrates the impact of strategic state investments, including recent legislative funding for high-quality instructional materials. Results from the most recent standardized State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness, or STAAR, test show that roughly half of Texas students meet grade-level expectations on most critical benchmarks.
Notably, Texas has a 90% four-year high school graduation rate – among the ten highest graduation rates in the country. Yet six years later, only a third of Texas students have attained a postsecondary credential.
While outcomes are largely improving – especially compared to pandemic-era declines – they are insufficient to address workforce and economic needs.
“These numbers are as good as they’ve ever been,” said Morath. “[But] the modern citizenship demands more from us.”
Assessment data is critical to measuring the impact of public investments in education and informing future strategies based on what is known to improve student achievement.
“What is very clear when we spend $80 billion a year of public money on this enterprise is we have to be focused on whether it is working. This is what we morally owe our children,” said Morath. “It really does all start with making sure that all our children can read and read with high degrees of proficiency.”
Financing schools is an ongoing process
Public school finance is set to be a central topic in the upcoming state legislative session, which will start in January. Lawmakers are working to provide public schools with more funds, as the last increase in public school funding came in 2019.
“I’m working very hard on a school finance bill. I’ve had significant conversations with other leaders to make certain that we provide the resources necessary for our public schools,” said Representative and Texas House Public Education Committee Chairman Brad Buckley in a conversation with Courtney Collins, Senior Editor at KERA. “I look forward to advancing that conversation. And I think it’s also important to know that it is not simply me. Nearly every member that I speak with, regardless of party, wants to make sure that we bring those resources to our public schools.”
The importance of community engagement in schools
Speakers emphasized the importance of the business community getting involved in public schools and helping prepare students for the workforce with their expertise.
“There’s so much talent in this room. You have your talent and your time… Be generous with it,” said Chairman Buckley. “Engage with your local schools. If you’re a business owner… go introduce [students] to what you do.”
There was also an acknowledgment of how unique the Dallas Region’s business community’s involvement already is.
“The DRC is proud to advocate for our public schools every day,” said DRC President and CEO Dale Petroskey. “And we’re fortunate to have a business community that gets involved and leans into our public schools.”
Thank you to our co-presenting sponsors, Toyota North America and The Commit Partnership. Thank you to our silver sponsors, Oncor and West Coast University Texas.
To learn more about the work the DRC is doing in Education, Talent & Workforce, visit our website.