Texas education commissioner calls for student cellphone ban in schools
Mike Morath made the recommendation as concerns rise that phones are harmful to studentsโ mental health and distract them from learning.
Dozens of Texas school districts press state to suspend new student data reporting system
The superintendents said they havenโt received enough support from the state or time to fix errors the system generated.
Democrats hope anti-voucher campaign will help win back South Texas House seat
The first-term Republican defending her seat said a private school voucher program will help her community, especially students from low-income families.
Texas school districts say upgrades to the stateโs student data reporting system could hurt their funding
The Texas Education Agency says thereโs time to fix problems before officially reported data is used to determine how much money districts get.
Former schools police chief says he was not at fault in Uvalde shooting, asks judge to toss charges
Pete Arredondoโs lawyers tell the court that the shooter, not the police, was to blame for the school violence.
Texas schools are hiring more teachers without traditional training. They hope the state will pay to prepare them.
Schools are hiring instructors with different types of backgrounds to deal with critical staff shortages.
A South Texas school district received a request to remove 676 books from its libraries
The request came from a local pastor who is part of a group that trains people to โdefend their freedom and liberty.โ Other faith leaders have pushed back.
Federal judge in Texas expands ruling that blocks Biden administration protections of LGBTQ students
The decision in the case brought by the Texas Attorney General preempts any future Title IX regulations that extend federal protections to LGBTQ students.
After six years of low scores for students learning English, Texas educators say itโs the testโs fault
Studentsโ scores in a test that gauges their English skills have been low since a redesign introduced computer scoring.
Judge blocks Texas from releasing this yearโs school accountability ratings
The ruling marks the fifth consecutive year Texas families have not received a full picture of their schoolsโ ratings, which are used to determine how they are performing.
After Uvalde city officials end battle over shooting records, victimsโ families say other agencies need to follow suit
The cityโs release ends a legal battle with news outlets, but other government agencies are withholding materials.
Texasโ youngest students are struggling with their learning, educators say
A national study found young children are faring worse academically than their peers before the pandemic. The problemโs scope in Texas is unclear.
Rising costs and stagnant state funds pushed this West Texas school district to the financial brink
The Ector County school district boosted student learning but now faces financial uncertainty. It closed schools and cut costs to stay afloat, but it wonโt slash teacher jobs.
Texas schools got billions in federal pandemic relief. It is coming to an end as the school year starts.
Educators say theyโll struggle to keep the programs they created with those funds, highlighting their precarious situation without more state help.
Texas teachers stand behind Kamala Harris after years of feeling targeted, neglected by Republicans
At a gathering for teachers in Houston, educators saw Harris as a potential ally at a time when conservatives push for changes in Texas classrooms.
51 Texas school districts are not complying with state ban on hairstyle discrimination, ACLU says
At least one school district, Tolar ISD in North Texas, told the ACLU it would update its policies to comply with the CROWN Act.
Texasโ Christian-influenced curriculum spurs worries about bullying, church-state separation
Some secular groups and members of other faiths say the curriculum could give schools too much control over how children are taught religion.
State Board of Education fields concerns about Christian bias in proposed K-12 curriculum
The proposal comes as part of a larger effort by officials in Texas and across the country to inject Christianity into public life.
Federal judge blocks Biden administrationโs Title IX guidelines to protect LGBTQ+ students
Judge Reed OโConnor said the Biden administration didnโt have the authority to make the changes, which would expand anti-discrimination protections.
Some Texas school officials are skeptical that a K-12 curriculum with Christian influences is the lifeline state leaders promise
Proposed lesson plans could improve student performance and help teachers, Texas education officials say. Not all district leaders and education advocates are convinced.
Hereโs how school vouchers, Paxton impeachment affected the Texas GOP primaries
Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton crusaded against House Republicans who voted against school vouchers and in favor of impeachment, respectively.
Texas House runoffs bring wave of GOP incumbent defeats, give Abbott votes for school vouchers
Six of eight GOP incumbents lost their races. Gov. Greg Abbott declared he โnow has enough votes to pass school choice.โ
Families of Uvalde shooting victims sue Texas DPS officers for waiting to confront gunman
In a separate settlement, the city of Uvalde will pay $2 million to the families, create a permanent memorial to the victims and provide enhanced training for police officers.
Houston ISD superintendent accused of funneling tax dollars out of state
A state lawmaker and Houston residents urge the Texas Education Agency to investigate whether the state-appointed superintendent improperly sent public funds to out-of-state charter schools.
Feds investigate another Texas school district for its gender identity mandate
Katy ISDโs board voted this past fall to require staff to notify parents if their child wants to use a different pronoun or identifies as a different gender.
Hereโs what the law says about protesting on Texas college campuses
Students can generally peacefully protest, regardless of their viewpoint, but colleges and authorities may enforce some restrictions and criminal laws to maintain peace and order.
Some South Texas school employees could be barred from holding elected office after fraud investigation
A state-appointed board of managers overseeing the La Joya Independent School District is set to consider the policy this week.
Texas will use computers to grade written answers on this yearโs STAAR tests
The state will save more than $15 million by using technology similar to ChatGPT to give initial scores, reducing the number of human graders needed. The decision caught some educators by surprise.
Two Denton school district principals indicted on charges of illegal electioneering
A grand jury indicted the principals for allegedly using their school emails to encourage staff to vote for certain candidates in the March primary.
A new Texas law allows schools to hire chaplains as counselors. So far, only one school has opted into the program.
Many independent school districts, including the largest ones, do not allow chaplains to serve as counselors, which is now allowed under a new Texas law.
To close or stay open? Ahead of the eclipse, Texas schools weighed logistical hurdles versus learning opportunities
Some districts will close for the day expecting traffic jams and busy city services. Others will stay open for parents who canโt find child care.
State Board of Education again delays discussion on whether to approve new Native studies course
The next opportunity for the board to review the course will not happen until its meeting in June.
Gov. Greg Abbott says Texas is two House votes away from passing school vouchers
Abbott called on supporters to push through the primary runoffs to deliver the final pro-voucher members needed to pass his legislation, plus some padding.
Veteran State Board of Education member loses her seat, two other Republican incumbents face runoffs
The results of Tuesdayโs primary elections could foreshadow a further push to the right for the body that sets the state's educational standards.
Texas places stateโs largest charter school network under conservatorship
The state had been investigating IDEA Public Schools since 2021 and raised questions on its spending on things like a luxury driver and private jet.
Judge says Texas school district can punish Black student for length of his hairstyle
After a short trial, a Texas judge ruled that Barbers Hill school officials are not violating a new state law prohibiting hair discrimination.
Texas passes on $450 million summer lunch program for low-income families
The USDA estimates the families of 3.8 million children could have received $120 per child to cover summer lunches if the state participated in the new $2.5 billion program launching this summer. Texas is one of 15 states opting out.
A Texas school has punished a Black student over his hairstyle for months. Neither side is backing down.
In a test of Texasโ new CROWN Act prohibiting discrimination based on hairstyles, a judge said the Barbers Hill school district can limit the length of male studentsโ hair.
After 7 years of state oversight, Texasโ takeover of Marlin ISD starts winding down
The transition at the Waco-area school district will shed light on how a democratically elected school board resumes control after a takeover.
Texas children are still struggling with math after the pandemic. Some schools are trying a new approach.
Policy experts worry students will fall short of the state's future workforce needs. Educators hope the new curriculum will help them.
Border security overpowers school vouchers and Paxton impeachment in Republican Texas House primaries
Despite all the hubbub about vouchers and the attorney generalโs impeachment, itโs still about the border.
Despite grand jury investigation, officers may not face charges in Uvalde shooting response
Local prosecutor Christina Mitchell last month convened a grand jury to investigate police officersโ delay in confronting the gunman at Robb Elementary School.
Feds asked to overhaul school discipline at North Texas school district after students jailed
The complaint claims Bonham ISD and a city court discriminated against both Black students and disabled students by creating a hostile environment at school. The groups also filed a separate complaint against Corpus Christi ISD with the Texas Education Agency.
From couch surfing to sleeping in a car: What one teenโs story tells us about homelessness in rural Texas
Georgia DeVries, an East Texas 17-year-old, shared her experience living in a car for one month last year on TikTok.
Texas Education Agency takes over La Joya ISD after investigating school board for fraud and conflicts of interest
The TEA appointed a โboard of managersโ to replace the districtโs school board trustees and named a new superintendent.
Texas Republicans who defied Gov. Greg Abbott on school vouchers face mounting primary attacks
As promised, the governor is going after members of his own party after some of them tanked his top legislative priority.
An East Texas school districtโs flagpole raises questions about Americaโs separation of church and state
The LaPoynor school district frequently flies a Christian flag, but may not be running afoul of the Constitution because it says students are choosing to raise it.
Texasโ new school safety law mostly addresses the Justice Departmentโs advice. But funding fixes is still an issue.
Lawmakers passed House Bill 3 last year to address some of the issues that led to the botched police response during the Uvalde school shooting.
Uvalde victimsโ families get an official acknowledgement of botched shooting response โ but some want criminal charges
Some relatives of the 21 people killed in Texasโ deadliest school shooting are demanding criminal charges after federal officials say delayed police response cost lives.
Appeals court blocks Texas from enforcing book rating law
Plaintiffs claimed that the 2023 law, which required book vendors to rate the explicitness of sexual references in materials sold to schools, was unconstitutionally broad.
Texasโ school ratings remain in limbo as the state and school districts fight over how strict the grading should be
Dozens of school districts sued the Texas Education Agency last fall, claiming revisions to the stateโs accountability system would hurt them.
Vouchers, border security, abortion: The issues you heard about in 2023 will continue to be hotly debated in 2024
After nearly a yearโs worth of legislative sessions, several issues are poised to dominate Texas politics this year. Hereโs a look at how things ended on several fronts last year โ and where theyโre headed next.
Diversity offices on college campuses will soon be illegal in Texas, as 30 new laws go into effect
Other new laws make changes to the tax code, criminal justice and health care systems.
Texans grapple with numerous challenges, yet many are actively seeking solutions
Across the state, people are looking for ways to make Texas a better place to live as they tackle hunger, rural โbrain drain,โ health care obstacles and other impediments.
Struggling to find teachers close to home, some Texas schools are looking overseas for help
Public schools got little help from lawmakers this year to address the stateโs chronic teacher shortage, so theyโve turned to other creative solutions โ like leaning on cultural exchange programs to recruit international teachers.
A Texas high school is piloting the stateโs first-ever Asian American studies course. Could politics stand in its way?
The course highlights Asian Americansโ contributions in U.S. history. It also seeks to offer an honest look at the mistreatment, like the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II.
Texasโ debate over school chaplains escalates school board culture wars
A new law lets schools use safety funds to pay for unlicensed chaplains working in mental health roles. Supporters say it helps address student mental health while critics blast it as a Christian nationalist attempt to convert children to a specific form of faith.
Texas superintendents say lack of school safety funding may lead to budget cuts
The fourth special legislative session this year ended without any increased funding for school safety โ even though public schools have complained for months they donโt have enough money to meet new safety mandates approved this year.
Abbott mum on another special session as he charges into voucher opponentsโ primary battles
Abbott is promising to continue the fight for โschool choiceโ but staying mum on whether that means he will call another special session as he has previously threatened.
After school voucher bill falls apart, supporters and opponents get ready for future fights
The Texas Houseโs vote to block education savings accounts disappointed voucher advocates and likely spelled doom for additional public school funding. Both bands say theyโll keep pushing for their priorities during next yearโs primary elections and the 2025 legislative session.
Texas Senate passes its own school safety funding bill, but little time remains to get it across the finish line
Senate Bill 5 would send an extra $800 million to public schools for security upgrades over the next two years. But the measure is at risk of becoming the latest casualty of the rift between the Texas House and Senate.
Federal appeals court questions Texasโ new school library regulations
House Bill 900 seeks to rid school libraries of inappropriate books by requiring book vendors to rate materials. A legal challenge says the law is too vague and broad.
Greg Abbott begins offensive against school voucher opponents, endorsing first House primary challenger
Abbott on Tuesday backed Hillary Hickland, an activist mother who is running against Rep. Hugh Shine, R-Temple.
School voucher fallout leaves Texas Legislature with no clear sense on next steps
Vouchers were left without a clear path forward after a decisive vote Friday. Gov. Greg Abbott, who had threatened lawmakers with more special sessions to pass the proposal, seems to have turned his attention to punishing voucher opponents in next yearโs primary elections.
An effort to prepare West Texas students to work in the oil and gas industry is expanding
The expansion, which will start with a smaller pilot in four high schools between Texas and New Mexico, is being paid for by the Permian Strategic Partnership, a group funded by major energy producers.
Texas school board launches investigation into how a trans student was stripped of his role in musical
The Sherman school board also temporarily ended the superintendent oversight of its fine arts programs pending the results of the investigation.
Texas House cuts school vouchers out of the education bill. See how lawmakers voted on the measure.
Hereโs how each representative voted on an amendment that removed school vouchers from the education bill on Friday.
Texas board rejects many science textbooks over climate change messaging
The Republican-controlled Texas State Board of Education this week rejected most of the proposed textbooks that include climate science for eighth grade students. Five of 12 were approved.
โOur public school system is our townโ: Why this rural Republican is voting against school vouchers
Despite intense political pressure, Republican Rep. Gary VanDeaver said he wonโt support a bill that includes school vouchers. Rural Republicans like VanDeaver have long opposed school vouchers because of the unique role public schools they play in their communities.
Texas House votes to remove school vouchers from massive education bill
The outcome was an embarrassment to Gov. Greg Abbott, who spent seven months lobbying two dozen Republicans who signaled opposition to vouchers in April.
After controversy, Texas school board says transgender student can sing in school musical
After Max Hightower scored a role in the seminal American musical, administrators changed their policy on performersโ gender. After backlash, the school board directed the school to produce the original version โOklahoma!โ โ not a youth version that cut Hightowerโs solo.
Texas House committee advances school voucher bill, overcoming key hurdle
The committee action means school voucher legislation is poised to get its first House floor vote in recent history. Gov. Greg Abbott said if the Legislature fails to pass it this time, he will continue to call them back into session until they do.
How a small East Texas school district replaced its gas-guzzling buses with an all-electric fleet
The Martinsville Independent School District used a federal grant to replace four buses, which started transporting students last month. The principal believes he will save enough money on gas to hire a new teacher.
Senate fast-tracks passage of vouchers and border security legislation
The Senate revved to life Thursday, holding committee hearings with little advance notice and advancing four bills that satisfy Abbottโs agenda.
School voucher critics remain largely unswayed during Texas House hearing
House Bill 1, which stagnated during the previous special session, finally received a hearing in the lower chamber, a crucial step that will decide whether the proposal gets a full vote.
Texas schools asked voters for $18 billion in new debt to fix its campuses. They largely said yes.
The voter approval rate for school maintenance and construction costs dipped in 2021 after lawmakers required school boards to call them โtax increases.โ
Texas' part-time Legislature has been at it all year. Now they're heading into a rare fourth special session
A full 30-day session amounts to about $1 million in per diem payments to lawmakers, which are meant to cover their expenses in Austin.
Abbott calls lawmakers back for fourth time to try again on school vouchers and border security
The governor announced the fourth special session would start an hour after the previous session adjourned.
The Texas Houseโs new priority education bill offers concessions to sway voucher skeptics
The revised bill promises a significant funding increase for public schools and academic accountability measures for students participating in the proposed voucher program, two of the biggest requests from voucher opponents.
Watch a Texas Tribune conversation on the state Legislatureโs special session
Journalists covering the Texas Capitol discussed what came out of this yearโs third special session and what is still to be resolved.
Proposition 9 would increase pensions for retired teachers and public school employees
If approved by voters on Nov. 7, the proposal would allocate $3.3 billion to the Teacher Retirement System of Texas, increasing pensions between 2% and 6%.
These home-schooling moms want to create a โmicroschoolโ for Black kids. They need vouchers to make it happen.
The mothers, who are counting on state legislators to reach a deal on education savings accounts, say their public schools were not equipped to create a learning space that is safe for Black kids.
Texas GOP lawmakersโ border and education wishlist would expand state budget by $2.7 billion โ and counting
If bills now being considered pass, lawmakers will be left with $3.3 billion to take care of unforeseen costs over the next two years. Some experts worry that Texas canโt sustain its massive spending on the border and public education.
With time running out, House punts on taking action on school vouchers
Gov. Greg Abbott just announced heโd reached a deal with the House to advance school vouchers, but with less than a week before the Legislature must adjourn the lower chamber took no action on the governorโs priority legislation.
School leaders say Texasโ campus safety funding doesnโt cover new state mandates
A bill to increase the stateโs support for school safety appears stalled in this monthโs special legislative session. But even if it passes, superintendents warn it isnโt enough.
Abbott touts school voucher deal with House leaders, but others reluctant to say if bill will pass
A deal between the governor and House would be a breakthrough after months of talks. But whether they actually have a deal is unclear.
Private schools are ready to expand into smaller communities if Texas adopts voucher program
With rural Texas relatively underserved by private schools, the potential for expansion could play a role in the debate over whether to let families use taxpayer money to pay for private education.
Texas judge temporarily blocks release of โunlawfulโ school accountability ratings
The ruling comes after dozens of school districts sued the Texas Education Agency, claiming the revised accountability system would hurt their ratings.
Facing enrollment declines, Texas Catholic schools are leading supporters of school vouchers
The Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops has been one of the staunchest voucher supporters, arguing it would increase access to religious education regardless of income level.