Deputy Director, Education and Workforce Policy
Renzo covers K-12 and AI policy, with a focus on college and career readiness and the responsible and effective use of technology in education, as well as school finance and assessment and accountability. He joined Texas 2036 in August 2021 as a Policy Advisor and returned as Deputy Director in January 2026.
In response to the growing use of AI in education, Texas voters are clear: safety must come first. This finding should not surprise given voters’ broader sentiment with AI in previous Texas 2036 voter polls. In November 2024, when asked how state government should approach AI in the context of improving government efficiency and services,…
Our prior two blogs on credentials of value provided recommendations on how the state can ensure the new HB 8 formula that rewards credential of value completion leads students to options proven to meet employers’ requirements for entry into an occupation with good wages. This final blog on credentials of value focuses on how the…
In our previous blog on the topic of credentials of value, we recommended that the state look at all available credentials in Texas and determine which are credentials of value so as to maximize students’ options for credentials with proven wage premiums. This blog explores how the state can use credentials’ linkages with relevant job…
House Bill 8, this Legislature’s high-profile package of reforms aimed at overhauling community colleges’ funding formulas, tasks the state with identifying which postsecondary credentials pass the minimum value threshold (MVT) for designation as a “credential of value.” The legislation also sets the dollar amounts for rewarding colleges for graduating students with such a credential. These…
The following written comments by Policy Advisor Renzo Soto were submitted Aug. 22 to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board regarding the adoption of emergency rules to implement HB 8 (88-R). To Chairman Farias, Vice Chair Williams, members of the Board, and Commissioner Keller, Texas 2036 extends our gratitude for your leadership in helping secure…
Legislators this year took a historic step toward fundamentally realigning the way Texas funds its community colleges. The goal? Ensuring Texans are earning postsecondary credentials that will give them greater access to higher-paying careers. The product of years of work by a commission established to rethink community colleges’ financing systems, this reform effort emphasized funding…