This map updates each week. Check the map credits for the last updated date. Every county in Texas is divided into voting precincts. The two major parties have precinct chairs who serve as election judges, as well as manage a ton of on-the-ground activities for the party. A precinct chair is the lowest level of…
Read More
I read an excellent article on Gray Matters in the Houston Chronicle called Why Barbershops Are Disappearing. The article points out that, culturally speaking, the barbershop is more than just a place to get a haircut. It’s a place where “men spend time with other men.” There are differences between barbershops that cut along racial…
Read More
There are over 200 civic clubs in the City of Houston. They have fancy names, like Timbergrove Manor and University Oaks. Some of them even have websites. But what do they actually do, and why should you get involved? What are civic clubs? Civic clubs are the most immediate, neighborhood-level form of public sector engagement.…
Read More
Updated May 29, 2017. Last week, the Texas Legislature published bills filed by our newly elected House and Senate members. The Texas Legislature only meets for six months every two years. These bills are the raw materials for potential new state laws. You can browse the publicly available data here. I wanted to get a better…
Read More
Fireworks can be a lot of fun, but the rules surrounding them can be confusing. The City of Houston uses its authority under the fire code to enforce a citywide fireworks ban, which means, for the most part, it’s illegal to set off fireworks around here. That might be a bummer for some people, but…
Read More
This is a post about how we built an early childhood education research map prototype for two Houston-based education advocacy groups and a coalition of 70+ partners. This is the end of the first phase of development. Check it out here. Quality early education increases school readiness, contributes to better student academic outcomes, and increases high…
Read More