Josh Wallenstein

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Survey Responses

RESPONSES TO THE 2026 ATPE CANDIDATE SURVEY:

1. If elected, what are your top priorities for Texas public education?

Please describe any specific goals or legislative initiatives you would pursue to strengthen the state’s public education system.

Fully funding our public schools by increasing the Basic Allotment and accounting for inflation. Recruiting and retaining outstanding teachers through competitive salaries, affordable health care, and retirement security. Expanding career and technical education, early childhood education, and college readiness programs.

2. Public Education Funding:

The 89th Legislature passed an $8 billion school funding bill, HB 2. However, despite years of unanswered “inflationary challenges, a large majority of that funding was earmarked to specific programs and did not supply districts with significant flexible funding, leaving the majority of Texas students in districts with deficit budgets and other significant funding challenges. Do you believe Texas public schools should receive additional funding? If so, how should the state pay for it, and should that funding be earmarked at the state level or provide districts with flexible dollars?

Yes but it shouldn't even be considered "additional funding", I believe it's more like basic funding to operate at a minimum level. District leaders understand their communities better than Austin does which is why I think the districts should decide where their dollars go themselves. We should pay for it through responsible budgeting, maybe even the rainy day fund.

3. ESA Vouchers:

Public education funding should prioritize public schools first. If ESA programs continue there are few things we should consider. They must not reduce funding for public schools, financial audits and transparency requirements should match those expected of public schools, student outcomes should be publicly reported while protecting student privacy and strong safeguards should prevent fraud and misuse of taxpayer funds.

No, I do not believe that we should be subsidising the private school tuition of wealthy students. And now that we do have a voucher system, we should require the same transparency and accountability for private schools as we do public schools.

4. Teacher Recruitment and Retention:

Under HB 2, passed in 2025, all educators in core content courses (math, English, science, and social studies) must be certified by 2030. While this is a good start, more can and should be done to ensure high-quality teachers continue to enter the classroom. What are your suggestions to improve the quality of the new teacher pipeline?

Teacher shortages cannot be solved through certification requirements alone. We need to be more competitive with things such as expanding paid teacher residency programs, raising the pay so teaching remains an attractive profession, and increasing scholarships and loan forgiveness for future educators.

5. Educator Pay and Benefits:

The 89th Legislature passed legislation creating a new mechanism to provide only classroom teachers with tiered raises based on early years of service and their district’s student enrollment. While the raises were significant, they did not apply to all campus educators, and the program created a significant negative funding stream at the district level due to unfunded increased costs for non-salary compensation tied to payroll, such as TRS retirement contributions. Do you support a state-funded across-the-board pay raise for all Texas educators? How would you ensure that compensation keeps pace with inflation and remains competitive with other professions?

Yes. I support a state funded pay raise for all educators, not just classroom teachers. To ensure we are staying competitive and in line with inflation we need reviews of educator compensation every three-four years to ensure salaries remain competitive, increase state funding so districts are not forced to absorb unfunded payroll related costs and index school funding to inflation so compensation keeps pace over time.

6. Educator Health Care:

The high cost of health insurance for active and retired educators continues to reduce take-home pay, with educators shouldering the vast majority of their ever-increasing heath care costs. How would you address the affordability and sustainability of educator health care, particularly the TRS-ActiveCare and TRS-Care programs?

I think we should look at increasing the state's contribution to TRS ActiveCare, stabilizing TRS Care for retirees and using the state's purchasing power to reduce health care costs.

7. Retirement Security:

Do you believe the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) should remain a defined-benefit pension plan for all current and future members? If not, what is your plan to provide a secure retirement for Texas educators, particularly considering that state law has been set up such that most districts do not participate in Social Security?

I think this is where I would lean on advisement of orgs such as ATPE, Texas AFT, etc. I think it is important to consult the parties who are fighting for these types of things day to day.

8. Accountability and Assessment Reform:

The Legislature has passed a new “through-year” multi-test model under HB 8. What role should standardized testing play in evaluating students, teachers, and schools? Should test results continue to determine A–F accountability ratings or teacher pay?

Assessments should be one tool among many for measuring student learning. I do not believe a single test should determine teacher pay or fully define a school's performance. Accountability systems should reflect the complexity of educating students. I support incorporating multiple measures of school performance, including student growth, graduation rates, workforce readiness, attendance, and school climate.

9. Parental Rights and Community Voice:

Recent legislative debates have focused on “parental rights” in education. In your view, what is the appropriate balance between accommodating the often conflicting wishes of individual parents while maintaining policies that reflect the broader community’s educational priorities and still providing consistency and an appropriate level of professional deference to educators?

I believe a few things. (1) Parents should have transparency regarding curriculum and instructional materials, (2) local school boards should continue serving as the voice of their communities, (3) schools should encourage collaboration between educators and families, and (4) state government should avoid unnecessary political interference in local classrooms.

10. School Safety:

HB 3 (2023) imposed new school safety requirements but did not fully fund them. Although the 89th Legislature increased the School Safety Allotment, many districts continue to face substantial unfunded staffing and facility costs associated with school safety laws. How would you make schools safer and ensure the state provides adequate funding to meet safety mandates?

I think it's a complex approach that includes fully funding all state safety mandates, expanding access to school counselors and mental health professionals, improving emergency preparedness and campus security and supporting threat assessment teams and evidence based violence prevention.

11. Curriculum and Local Control:

What do you believe is the proper role of the State Board of Education, the Texas Education Agency, and local school districts in setting curriculum standards and selecting instructional materials?

The State Board of Education should establish broad academic standards that ensure consistency across Texas.

The Texas Education Agency should provide oversight, technical assistance, and accountability while respecting local decision making.

Local school districts should retain primary responsibility for selecting instructional materials and implementing curriculum that meets state standards while reflecting local needs.

This balance preserves statewide academic expectations while allowing communities flexibility to meet the needs of their students.

12. Educator Rights and Professional Associations:

State law allows educators and other public employees to voluntarily join professional associations such as ATPE and have membership dues deducted from their paychecks at no cost to taxpayers. Do you support or oppose allowing public employees to continue exercising this right? Why or why not?

I strongly support. These organizations provide valuable professional development, legal resources, advocacy, and support for educators. Participation is entirely voluntary, and payroll deduction is an efficient administrative process that does not impose additional costs on taxpayers.