Establishing policy and providing leadership for the Texas
public school system are the responsibilities of the State Board
of Education. By adopting policies and setting standards for
educational programs, the board provides the direction necessary
to enable Texas public schools to prepare today’s schoolchildren
for a successful future. Composed of 15 members elected from
roughly equally populous State Board of Education districts, the
board adopts rules and establishes policies that govern a wide
range of educational programs and services provided by Texas
public schools. The commissioner of education serves as chief
executive officer of the board and supervises the administration
of board rules through the Texas Education Agency. Together the
board, the commissioner, and the agency facilitate the operation
of a vast public school system consisting of 1,237 school
districts and charter schools, more than 8,400 campuses, more
than 659,000 educators and other employees, and more than 4.8
million schoolchildre