Morning Roundup: Question 1: Spell 'TAKS' edition

Good morning, Houston. So a record high 40,182 Texas high school seniors won't be graduating this spring because they failed all or some of the TAKS test, the standardized exam required to get a high school diploma. Overall, 84 percent of students passed all four parts of the test — math, science, social studies and English — but black and Hispanic students seemed to have the hardest time, with 28 percent of black students and 24 percent of Hispanics failing one or more sections. So is this a sign of things to come? Well, not necessarily: More juniors passed the exam this year than last year, which means the senior passing rate may increase next year. As we know from our own high school experience, though, there's no accounting for senioritis.

>> Clearing the air in Baytown, Round 2: Voters in Baytown voted this weekend to uphold an indoor smoking ban that they first approved in November. The measure was on Saturday's ballot because Baytown property rights advocates petitioned to get it there — and just because voters chose to uphold the ban doesn't mean the property rights folks are giving up. "The city's charter does not restrict us from getting another vote and the city can't amend the charter to prevent it until May of 2008 which would be after the November election," James Haarmeyer, a spokesman for Baytown Citizens for Property Rights, said. The group is trying to get the ban overturned so Baytown can return to its previous policy, which allowed smoking in bars and public places that have designated smoking areas with separate ventilation systems.

>> What about a car shaped like a giant dollar sign?: Houston's Art Car Parade is one of those things that make us love living here — but is the annual event being ruined by crass commercialism? Well, it's hard to say: On the one hand, a Starbucks car shaped like a big cup and a McDonald's car shaped like a shoe (a big, red one, we assume) qualify as art, even if they are corporate-sponsored, but on the other hand, they kind of go against the organic counterculture feel of the parade. "The problem is that any time you have something like this that starts out as an outlaw thing, it's all totally cool and everybody wants to be involved with it 'cause it's cool,'" Jackie Harris, one of the parade's originators, told the Chronicle. "But then it gets bigger and bigger. It's just like a snowball, and the bigger a snowball gets the more cling-ons you get." Ooh! We just had a great idea for a snowball car sponsor. Excuse us while we make a quick phone call ...

>> This week's weather: Looks like we'll have a chance of rain most days this week — but the good news is that things should cool down a bit by Wednesday, opening the door to what could be a really spectacular weekend. Today, look for morning sun followed by a 30 percent chance of rain with a high of 89; overnight, the temperature will drop into the upper 60s and the rain chance will stick around. Expect scattered storms Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, with afternoon highs falling to near 80 by the end of the week.
For now, there's a good chance of scattered headlines ...