Texas House District 50 has elected a new state representative. Democrat Celia Israel won yesterday's special election runoff to fill the unexpired term of former Rep. Mark Strama (D–Austin). She'll take over that seat for the remainder of this year and is also on the 2014 ballot seeking a full term that would begin in January 2015. Related Teach the Vote content: Monday is the deadline to register to vote in the March primary election. ATPE State President Ginger Franks recently spoke about the importance of voting.

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The State Board of Education meeting continues this week, with much attention focused on the anticipated adoption of new graduation requirements. You can watch the hearings online. In related news, Texas Commissioner of Education Michael Williams gave a keynote address yesterday at the annual Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA) Midwinter Conference in Austin. He expressed support for preparing all students to go to college and requiring them to take Algebra II. Williams also stressed the need to close performance gaps for minority students.

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In Washington, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce announced that it will hold a Feb. 5 hearing entitled “The Foundation for Success: Discussing Early Childhood Education and Care in America.”