A 2007 law mandating three-point seat belts on all new Texas school buses takes effect this Wednesday. Any buses purchased after September 1st must be equipped with the seat belts. The law, HB 323, was drafted by State Rep. Mike Hamilton and State Sen. Eddie Lucio.
During the 2009 legislative session, lawmakers appropriated $10 million for fiscal year 2011 for the seat belt program, dependent on developing a plan to reimburse school districts for the cost associated with seat belts on new buses. That reimbursement plan, developed by the Texas Transportation Institute and Texas Education Agency, is complete. However, authorization by the Legislative Budget Board is pending.
A representative from TEA told local news outlet KXAN that the LBB has not yet approved the implementation and reimbursement plan, and that TEA is not authorized to implement the program until it's approved. Meanwhile, TEA recommended the fund be cut from $10 million to just $3.6 million. TEA and other state agencies were asked to cite programs where cuts could be made in order to reach a 5 percent total budget decrease.
Gov. Rick Perry recently tackled the topic of education, just as millions of Texas students go back to class. He announced the formation of Texas Education on iTunesU. It's a "modern approach" for keeping teachers and students in the know by providing free educational material accessible anywhere.
“iTunes U will easily and efficiently distribute Texas-based educational materials to teachers, parents and students statewide, and will help improve Texas education and secure our position as the best place to live and work in the years to come,” said the governor. “The quality of education in Texas is steadily improving as we continue to combine tried and true teaching methods with new technology to achieve educational success.”
Teachers will be able to see professional development and support materials, according to a report from the governor's office. Students will be able to get more information to understand subjects better.
Texas Education on iTunes U expands Project Share, a collaborative effort with the New York Times and Epsilen LLC, which will enable the creation and delivery of high quality professional development in an interactive and engaging eLearning environment. The online platform, unveiled this spring, also provides access to online resources, online course content, academic networking and professional learning communities. The Project Share initiative currently supports more than 146,000 teacher accounts, and the website (www.projectsharetexas.org) will link directly to Texas Education on iTunes U.
Perry's opponent in the upcoming gubernatorial election, Democrat Bill White, wants to hold schools, teachers, and students accountable from the top down, according to the candidate's web site. White outlines his plan for education on his web site, which includes expanding pre-kindergarten programs, targeting drop out students to get them back in class, allowing teachers to teach writing, reading and problem-solving skills instead of teaching to a test, and making college affordable.
White says Texas is just about in last place in the country for the number of adults with high school diplomas, and cites a report that says Texas is not globally competitive.
Gov. Perry wants to put education issues in front of state legislators next year when the session begins. Perry is calling for a multi-million dollar expansion for the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) program and requiring high school students to be enrolled in school or working toward a GED to be eligible to keep a Texas driver license, to name a few.
Regardless, politicians view education as one of their top priorities on both sides of the aisle, and many are taking steps to improve education standards in Texas.
They are old time photographs made up of various symbols of American patriotism. But these aren't just any photographs because each symbol is made up by actual patriots: members of the armed forces.
It took 30,000 men at Camp Custer in Battle Creek, Michigan to create this human shield in 1918, photographed by Arthur Mole and John Thomas.
Frank Maresca, owner of New York's Ricco/Maresca Gallery, told CBS News correspondent Serena Altschul this picture holds the record for the largest number of people posing in a picture: "From the tip of the shield to the bottom of the stars you might have 2,000 people. But if you are talking about the last row of stars, you would probably have 20,000 people at least, just in the last row." That's because to maintain proper perspective, many more men had to be placed in the distance than up close. (Photo: Library of Congress)
To the left, 100 officers and 9,000 enlisted men at Paris Island forming the Marine Corps' symbol. (Photo: Hammer Gallery)
Photographers Mole and Thomas, as mentioned above, lived outside Chicago, and started off shooting religious images with members of their church. Later, soldiers on military bases volunteered for the cause. Here, 25,000 officers and men at New Jersey's Fort Dix form the Liberty Bell (with crack). (Photo: Hammer Gallery)
Oprah's influence has spread from Chicago to Austin, as the Texas Department of Transportation signs on as a partner in her "No Phone Zone" day tomorrow, April 30.
TxDOT plans to use signs all along Texas highways to promote putting down the cell phone while driving, with a particular emphasis on not texting while driving. Digital dynamic message signs will bear the messages, "Make Your Vehicle a No Phone Zone," or "Drive Now. Text or Talk Later."
More than 100,000 crashes were caused by distracted driving in Texas in 2008. Distracted driving includes not only cell phone use, but also talking with other people in the car, eating, smoking using dashboard controls, or simply reaching for something in their vehicle.
"There were 524 deaths in Texas in 2008 because of driver distraction," said Terry Pence, director of TxDOT’s Traffic Safety Program. "The statewide messages will remind drivers that April 30 is a no phone zone day, but we hope that all Texans will think about putting away the cell phones every time they get behind the wheel-not just on April 30."
You can visit distraction.gov for more information on distracted driving, or see Oprah's original "No Phone Zone" message below.
A showdown may be brewing between the Obama administration and a Senate committee that's asking for materials relating to the shooting incident that took place last year at Fort Hood, near Killeen.
The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee subpoenaed all of the materials that the Pentagon holds relating to the shooting that killed 13 people, and materials on the suspect, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan. The committee says they want to make sure the Pentagon is ensuring something similar doesn't happen again.
The Pentagon claims the material would put the case against Hasan in jeopardy, but agreed in a compromise to release Hasan's personnel file and a secret addendum detailing how the Pentagon failed to respond to tips on Hasan's behavior leading up to the incident.
John Galligan, Hasan's attorney, expressed concern that the information that the Senate committee is requesting is information he has asked for but not received.
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