Round Rock’s cost for bus services to Austin to rise
The city of Round Rock’s cost for bus service to Austin is expected to increase, as City Council will consider a change to the agreement with the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority on Sept. 11.
The gist: As part of the agreement, Capital Metro will continue to provide fixed route bus service from Round Rock to Austin. Capital Metro provides the vehicles, supervisors, fuel and bus operators for the service.
The contract amounts to over $1.5 million—up from the $1.3 million agreement approved last year. Half of the cost will be funded by federal funding and the other half will come from the city’s general revenue.
Golden Chick now open near on Palm Valley Boulevard in Round Rock
A new Round Rock location of Golden Chick opened in September.
About the business: This is the 18th Austin-area location of the Texas-based fast food restaurant, which offers chicken tenders, sandwiches, wings, salads and fried catfish. Sides include mashed potatoes, fries, green beans, dirty rice, macaroni and cheese, and more. The site is the former home of Chicken Express, which closed in February.
Alpha School showcases expedited student learning through artificial intelligence alongside state, federal leaders
Austin-based private school Alpha School is aiming to expedite learning for more students using artificial intelligence at new academies opening across the country.
What happened: On Sept. 9, U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon visited Alpha School in Austin alongside Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath. Alpha School co-founder MacKenzie Price highlighted how the school is using AI to personalize and improve students’ education.
What they're saying:“It's the most exciting thing I've seen in education in a long time,” McMahon said about Alpha School. “I'm incredibly enthusiastic about this.”
How it works: Students complete their academic learning in two hours each day using an AI platform known as 2 Hour Learning. Price said the Alpha School model enables students to learn twice as fast as they would in a traditional school setting.
What to know: Most Texas school districts required to display donated Ten Commandments posters under state law
Most Texas public schools are required to display donated posters of the Ten Commandments in classrooms under Senate Bill 10, a state law that took effect Sept. 1.
The details: On Aug. 20, a Texas federal judge temporarily blocked the following 11 school districts from displaying the Ten Commandments:
Alamo Heights ISD
Austin ISD
Cy-Fair ISD
Dripping Springs ISD
Fort Bend ISD
Houston ISD
Lackland ISD
Lake Travis ISD
North East ISD
Northside ISD
Plano ISD
Attorney General Ken Paxton appealed the ruling and directed other school districts to begin displaying donated copies of the Ten Commandments.
The debate: Proponents of SB 10, including Paxton and Republican state lawmakers, have argued that seeing the Ten Commandments on a daily basis will help Texas students better understand U.S. history and learn about morality.
Some religious scholars have stressed the importance of teaching students about religion in an “appropriate educational context.” Democratic lawmakers have expressed concerns that non-Christian students will feel left out or be bullied by their peers for not following the Ten Commandments.
