The changes in HISD rival some of the most significant shakeups to a public school system ever.
Dave Harmon
Dave Harmon joined the Tribune in 2017 after spending 18 years at the Austin American-Statesman as a reporter, assistant metro editor and member of the investigative team. A Kalamazoo, Michigan, native, Dave moved to Texas with his family in 1981 and went to high school in Katy. After graduating from the University of Texas at Austin with a journalism degree, he started his reporting career in the Rio Grande Valley at The (McAllen) Monitor, covering health care and the environment on both sides of the Texas-Mexico border. Dave lives in Austin, is a proud Longhorns fan and taught journalism at his alma mater as an adjunct instructor for more than a decade. He’s proficient in Spanish and travels frequently to Mexico.
Posted in
Public Education
Texas schools illegally suspended thousands of homeless students
A 2019 law banned schools from suspending homeless students from school grounds but didn’t include money for enforcement.
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Energy
Photos: Storms toppled transmission towers, downed trees and blew out windows across Houston area
The severe weather caused widespread damage, killed at least four people and left hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses without power.
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Criminal Justice
Houston Police Chief Troy Finner resigns amid suspended-cases scandal
The resignation came amid a probe into how the department has suspended thousands of criminal investigations due to a lack of personnel.
Posted in
Demographics
“Trust in yourself”: Colony Ridge residents rely on business savvy to establish life in U.S.
Despite several daily and systematic challenges, the Liberty County community is home to industrious entrepreneurs from across the Latin American diaspora.
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Environment
Texas, U.S. reach $6.6 million settlement over 2019 Deer Park chemical fire
Attorney General Ken Paxton said the settlement will reimburse the state and feds for damages to natural resources.
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LGBTQ+ Texans
“This school district has failed him”: Trans Katy teen drops out after gender policy passes
The district’s new approach to gender identity has dramatically impacted students like Kadence Carter, who left Mayde Creek High School after it went into effect.
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Politics
Houston congressional candidate accused by former staff of sexual misconduct and using Israel conflict as political cover
The Democrat running against incumbent U.S. Rep Lizzie Fletcher for District 7 has lost endorsements and staff following a lawsuit alleging sexual misconduct.
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Health care
Grieving Houston-area students’ well-being at stake as federal COVID-19 funds fade
The federal stimulus money that helped fund many mental health positions in Texas schools will end in the fall of 2024.
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Criminal Justice
Texas inmate Syed Rabbani taken off death row after original appeal was left pending for decades
A prosecutor called delays in Rabbani’s long-standing appeal “a due process disaster.”