Garry Jones Named Executive Director of DFER TX

AUSTIN, TX (Feb. 28, 2023) – Democrats for Education Reform (DFER) announced today that Garry Jones has been appointed Executive Director of Democrats for Education Reform Texas (DFER TX) and its affiliate think tank Education Reform Now Texas (ERN TX).

Jones, who most recently served as Political Director of DFER TX, brings more than a decade of experience as a strategist working in Texas Democratic politics, including serving as a Chief of Staff in the Texas State Senate. Under Jones’ leadership last year, DFER TX helped elect six Democratic education Champions to the Texas House of Representatives, and supported Staci Childs in winning her seat on the State Board of Education. 

“The Democratic victories that Garry helped realize in Texas—particularly in such a short time—are remarkable,” said DFER Interim CEO Shakira Petit. “Given the current political environment, there is an urgent, critical need to invest in Democrats who will fight for a quality, equitable public education for Texas students and Garry has distinguished himself as the leader DFER TX needs to grow our chapter’s impact in the Lone Star State.” 

With 2023 and 2024 elections on the horizon, DFER TX is focused on growing the number of Democratic education champions in the state legislature and in municipalities across the state, while also advancing and defending a pro-student education agenda. 

These policy priorities include overhauling the community college finance system, protecting funding gains for public education, ensuring all public schools are treated equitably by local governments, and maintaining and perfecting policies designed to hold schools accountable to parents and taxpayers. 

“It is an honor to take the helm at DFER TX to elevate the Democratic Party in this important work of advancing educational equity,” said Jones. “With the substantial budget surplus, Texas Democrats have a real opportunity to make historic investments in public education and solidify ourselves as champions for student-centered, common-sense policies. I look forward to working together with elected officials and partners across the state to make Texas a national example of Democrats leading on innovative public school reform policies.” 

DFER TX was launched in 2022 to build on the organization’s prior work with Legacy 44, a volunteer-led state Political Action Committee (PAC) that invests in Democratic candidates for elected office in Texas who, following in the path of our 44th President Barack Obama, will promote a strong public education system. 

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About Democrats for Education Reform 

Democrats for Education Reform (DFER) is a national political organization that supports elected Democrats and candidates for office who seek to expand policies and practices that increase educational equity for students of color and students from low-income backgrounds. It is a partner organization of Education Reform Now Advocacy, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization that supports DFER’s legislative and policy advocacy work. DFER maintains state chapters in Colorado, Connecticut, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Texas, and Washington, D.C.  www.dfer.org.

A Democratic Guide to Public Charter Schools: Charter School Outcomes

Today we present the fifth and final installment of the 2nd Edition of the Democratic Guide to Public Charter Schools. And we saved the best for last: The reason we support public charter schools is because they work for those students whom they are intended to serve. Across the entire country, public charter schools have given low-income students and children of color an alternative to the chronically low-performing traditional public schools to which they would have otherwise been assigned.

The most rigorous and methodologically sound studies indicate that students of color, students in poverty, and English Language Learners (ELLs), enrolled in public charter schools make significantly greater academic progress compared to their peers with similar demographics in traditional public schools. Our best urban public charter schools provide students with the equivalent of three to five months of additional learning time in math and reading as compared to what they would have received otherwise.

Read the full section here.
Also see: Part 1, Origins, Part 2: Support from Democratic Leadership, Part 3: Public Opinion Research, and Part 4: Charter Enrollment in Democratic Strongholds. 

DFER Releases Results from Public Opinion Research on Charter Schools

DFER Releases Results from Public Opinion Research on Charter Schools
Previews Forthcoming “Democratic Guide to Public Charter Schools”

WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 9, 2019) – Today, Democrats for Education Reform (DFER) released new public opinion research on Democratic support for public charter schools. The poll results are part of the 2nd Edition of DFER’s “Democratic Guide to Public Charter Schools (DGPCS),” which will be released in full next week in honor of National Public Charter Schools Week (May 12 -18).

Topline findings from the research include strong support for public charter schools among key Democratic constituencies, particularly Black and Hispanic voters.

These are the first publicly reported polling results in recent years that drill down on views about public charter schools and public school choice within the Democratic Party. The DFER-commissioned poll was conducted by Benenson Strategy Group, in consultation with 270 Strategies.

As the full forthcoming “Democratic Guide to Public Charter Schools” will show, from their origins in the 1980’s up until the present day, public charter schools have enjoyed strong bipartisan support, including from many prominent Democrats.

The guide will trace the origins of public charter schools back to leading progressive thinkers and advocates and shows that the current public charter school sector reflects our shared values of equalizing educational opportunities and empowering local communities. These leaders exemplify the ideal of fighting on behalf of our nation’s most vulnerable individuals, which has always been one of the Democratic Party’s core missions.

You can find the polling results here. The complete 2nd Edition “Democratic Guide to Public Charter Schools” will be rolled out next week.

Additional key findings include:

  • Findings from a poll of millennial voters, another key Democratic constituency, show even higher levels of support overall and similar trends among racial and ethnic groups relative to each other
  • Progressive charter advocates have some work to do with White Democratic primary voters who expressed the lowest favorability for public charter schools of all key demographic categories and who are also less likely to have their children enroll in and benefit from public charter schools.
  • The views of White Democratic voters seem to be a significant political impediment to parents of color gaining access to high-quality public charter schools that best serve their children.
  • Every key Democratic constituency supports public charter schools as part of a system of other public school choice options that includes magnet schools, Montessori schools, and career academies.

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