Cargill confirmed as head
of State Board of EducationAUSTIN -- The state Senate unanimously confirmed Gov. Rick Perry's choice to stay on as head of the State Board of Education.Barbara Cargill, a Republican and former biology teacher from The Woodlands, has led the board since Perry nominated her in 2011. She is the first board chair to win confirmation for a full term since 2005.Cargill has voted in favor of teaching what she called "weaknesses" in the theory of evolution, but during a Senate committee hearing last week, she pledged to set aside her personal beliefs when determining classroom curriculum.-- The Associated PressLegislation offered forSouth Texas med schoolAUSTIN -- State Rep. Rene Oliveira, D-Brownsville, and other South Texas lawmakers laid out legislation that would create a new, unified campus and a medical school for the University of Texas System in the Rio Grande Valley.The Legislature has set aside money for the project, but has not passed the laws to make it happen.Oliveira said a new medical school would add hundreds of doctors to South Texas, where they are desperately needed.-- The Associated PressMeeting held on free tradeagreement with EUBritain's deputy ambassador to the United States and bipartisan Texas politicians gathered at the Capitol on Wednesday to build support for a free trade agreement with the European Union.British representative Philip Barton said that nontariff barriers will be the focus of future talks.Texas exports to the European Union last year were worth $29 billion, and a free trade pact could add $10 billion a year in trade for Texas, Barton said.State Rep. Rafael Anchia, D-Dallas said the House would have hearings on what the state could do to support and benefit an EU trade agreement. -- The Associated PressHave more to add? News tip? Tell us
