TIC32-History of the 20 Texas Regional ECSs and ABOLISH THEM - The Tick-ED Tackling Education

CALL TO ACTION: Learn History of the 20 Texas Regional ECSs and ABOLISH THEM - Return $ to Taxpayers - Lynn Davenport
"In 1965, the Texas legislature authorized the State Board of Education to develop plans and operating procedures for a statewide system of regional education MEDIA centers to be supported with equal amounts of state and local funds.


Under Senate Bill 408, the State of Texas established Regional Education Media Centers. Their purpose was to provide educational media materials, equipment, and maintenance thereof, and to be sources to participating free public school districts. They were early adopters of technology.


In 1967, prior to the activation of the media centers, and at the request of the State Board of Education, the legislature broadened the scope of the 1965 legislation to include provisions for establishing 20 Regional Education Service Centers.


The Centers are service organizations, not regulatory arms of the Texas Education Agency, and participation by schools in services of the centers is voluntary. Chapter 8 of the Texas Education Code, enacted by the 75th Texas Legislature in 1997, specified the following purposes of ESCs: Regional Education Service Centers shall:
Assist school districts in improving student performance in each region of the system;
Enable school districts to operate more efficiently and economically; and
Implement initiatives assigned by the legislature or the commissioner.


ESCs do not possess tax levying or bonding authority and rely on grants and contracts for funding. Revenues are received from three primary sources. State funds, federal funds, and contracts with school districts.
Region 20 is the most egregious with the advancement of technologies and the work of Dwain M. Estes who got his start working for the Pentagon.
The ESCs operate as nonprofits and have massive budgets. They serve as conduits for TEA to steer contracts and enrich edtech vendors with taxpayer funding.
Commissioner Morath uses the 20 ESCs to conceal his agenda for privatization and the shifting of public monies into private hands. These are lucrative deals for vendors. Some of the major contracts have been steered to GreenLight Credentials (Region 10), Amplify, Maya, The Commit Partnership, and Kitamba (Region 13).


It is time to stop passing more bandaid bills. REPEAL SB 408 and all bills that undermine local control and local responsibility.
Abolish TEA and the 20 Regional Service Centers and pay and train the teachers with the money saved on consultants and the lucrative edtech contracts."

Categories: Politics & Civics, People's Report

Starring: Lynn Davenport