In the video that launched The Texas Promise: A Vision for Public Education at the 2026 TASA Midwinter Conference, then-TASA President Chris Moran offered a powerful reminder: “We don’t drift toward excellence. Moving toward excellence requires courage and the ability to state what we truly believe in as a public school system.”
The Texas Promise does exactly that. Developed by more than 100 Texas public school superintendents and administrators, it articulates a shared vision for the public education system our students, educators and communities deserve. Across the state, school leaders are already using its aspirations to guide strategic planning, professional learning and conversations about the future of their districts.
Now, The Texas Promise is helping shape TASA’s future as well.
This summer, more than 100 superintendents and administrators gathered at the John D. Horn Leadership Summit to help develop a new strategic framework for our association. Their charge was to identify how TASA can best equip, connect and advocate for school leaders as they work to bring the aspirations of The Texas Promise to life in their communities.
Their conversations were candid, ambitious and deeply rooted in the realities facing Texas public schools. Participants considered the professional learning, services, resources, and advocacy school leaders will need — not only to respond to today’s challenges, but also to lead public education toward a stronger future.
The framework is being shaped by the results of a comprehensive member survey, input from TASA leaders, and the collective thinking generated at the summit. TASA staff will use that guidance to develop a draft, which will be refined with feedback from the TASA officers and the Executive Committee before it is unveiled at the 2027 TASA Midwinter Conference.
At a time when school leaders face constant challenges and distractions, The Texas Promise provides a clear anchor: a shared commitment to meaningful learning, student success, strong communities, and a thriving democracy. TASA’s new strategic framework will define how your association will support you in advancing that promise over the next decade.
The vision belongs to all of us. Together, we are building the capacity, courage and collective action needed to make it real.
