Texas Legislature nearing final approval of $8.5 billion school funding package
The Senate gave initial approval to the legislation. After one more vote, it heads to the House, where leaders say it will pass. Full Story
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![After out loud reading time, Dana Altamirano discusses the book they just read as a group with her fourth grade students at West Avenue Elementary in Waco on April 5, 2024.]()
Credit: Greta Díaz González Vázquez/The Texas Tribune -
Senators soften student discipline bill, giving Texas schools more flexibility
The Texas Senate had previously proposed more severe consequences in the bill. Full Story
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![Nimitz Middle School students gather in the hallway outside of a classroom as they wait for a teacher between periods Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Prayer period in schools backed by Texas Legislature
A House vote showed broad support for the measure that would let districts set aside time for prayer or religious study. Full Story
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![A cross from a rosary, on Nov. 26, 2019.]()
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Classroom violence went up in Texas after the pandemic. Is more discipline the answer?
Texas lawmakers are poised to make it easier to suspend disruptive students. But some teachers and school psychologists say discipline alone won’t meet the mental health needs at the root of their behavior. Full Story
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![Public educator Nadene Casteel at Heritage Rose Elementary School on Monday, May 19, 2025, in Ft. Bend County.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Bill to teach Texas kids the dangers of communism — but not fascism — clears the Legislature
The bill won bipartisan support despite efforts from multiple Democrats that would have also required students to learn about fascism and Nazism. Full Story
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![The United States flag flies at the Texas Capitol in Austin on Oct. 19, 2021.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House, Senate lawmakers reach $8.5 billion school funding deal
The deal appears to strike a face-saving compromise for both chambers over how to increase funds for the state’s public schools, with money earmarked for teacher pay and overhead costs. Full Story
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![Bonham Elementary School in San Antonio on May 9, 2018.]()
Credit: Laura Skelding for The Texas Tribune -
Ted Cruz introduces bill incentivizing K-12 scholarships
The bill, titled the Universal School Choice Act, would provide a tax credit to match an amount donated to organizations that provide K-12 scholarships. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, arrives for the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee nominations in the Russell Senate Office Building on Tuesday, May 13,2025.]()
Credit: Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call/Sipa USA via REUTERS -
Texas Senate passes bill that would require public schools to use Christian B.C./A.D. system to track years
The legislation would prevent schools from using materials that do not use the terms “Before Christ” and “Anno Domini.” Many historians have moved away from them to be more inclusive. Full Story
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![The historic Old City of Jerusalem on May 14, 2025.]()
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Texas lawmakers want penalties for local governments’ campaign finance posting failures
ProPublica and The Texas Tribune found nearly three dozen school districts were missing required campaign finance reports online. Now lawmakers are pushing to impose steep penalties on local governments that fail to abide by the law. Full Story
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![Republican state Rep. Carl Tepper has issued a new bill to strengthen a law that requires local governments to post campaign finance reports online, citing ProPublica and The Texas Tribune’s reporting.]()
Credit: Spencer Selvidge for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate panel approves $8 billion school funding plan as it seeks middle ground with House
The proposal would heavily invest in teacher pay and special education. It includes a modest $55 increase to schools' base per-student funding, significantly lower than what the House had sought. Full Story
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![Third grade teacher Eran McGowan helps students work through math problems at the Eddie Bernice Johnson STEM Academy in Dallas, Texas on Feb. 5, 2024.]()
Credit: Azul Sordo for The Texas Tribune -
Clock is ticking for Texas’ $8 billion school funding bill
Senators will hold a hearing Thursday on their counterproposal to the House's school funding bill. House Democrats and public education advocates have criticized the upper chamber for not moving faster to advance the legislation. Full Story
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![Nimitz Middle School students line up to enter their next class on Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Pressing deadlines, unfinished business: Where the Legislature stands on abortion, water, property tax and more
A raft of social conservative priorities backed by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick hang in the balance, including efforts to infuse more religion into public schools. Full Story
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![Texas Speaker of the House Dustin Burrows presides over discussion of SB 2 Amendment 1 in the House Chamber in Austin on April 16, 2025.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee for The Texas Tribune -
Texas lawmakers debating DEI ban in K-12 schools ask: Do students benefit from teachers who look like them?
Conservative lawmakers say DEI efforts are discriminatory and push liberal ideologies on children. Critics point to research showing a diverse teacher body helps students succeed academically. Full Story
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![Instructor's Aid, Nicole Johnson, walks JoAnn Zavala's pre-K students down the hall to music class, their first "specials" visit for the day, on Sept. 5, 2019.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
It’s not just about vouchers and school funding. Here are other Texas public education bills you should track.
Student discipline, uncertified teachers and school bans on DEI and cellphones are some of the topics being debated at the Texas Legislature this session. Full Story
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![A classroom at Kennedy-Powell Elementary in Temple on April 17, 2025.]()
Credit: Ilana Panich-Linsman for The Texas Tribune -
Texas bill to overhaul STAAR test clears the House but faces a skeptical Senate
House Bill 4 would make the test shorter and base scores on how students’ performance compares to national averages. Full Story
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![Nimitz Middle School 7th grade teacher Pricilla Martinez leads her class in an activity Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa. STAAR testing begins across Texas on Tuesday.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
After a sometimes graphic debate, Texas House advances bill limiting kids’ access to sexually explicit books in libraries
The bill would bar those under 18 from checking out books with sexually explicit material without parental permission. Full Story
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![Ector County Library's fiction section includes novels, anime, science fiction, westerns, and more. Jacob Ford for The Texas Tribune]()
Credit: Jacob Ford for The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ youngest learners are behind in math and reading. A pair of bills aims to get them back on track.
Students who are behind in third grade rarely catch up. Texas lawmakers want to intervene earlier. Full Story
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![At the Waco Central Library, Ellis Pittman, five, looks for a book to take home on April 5, 2024. Pittman had just started reading.]()
Credit: Greta Díaz González Vázquez/The Texas Tribune -
Ken Paxton drops “critical race theory” lawsuit against Coppell ISD
The school district called the undercover videos that led to the accusations “heavily edited,” “manipulated” and “grossly misleading.” Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks during the Republican Party of Texas convention on Thursday, May 23, 2024 in San Antonio.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Lawmakers want to expand Texas’ teacher pay raise program. Many educators will still be left out.
The Teacher Incentive Allotment gives raises to teachers based on performance. But it leaves out many educators and school staff who contribute to students' success. Full Story
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![Temple, Texas - 4/17/25: JoMeka Gray teaches a class of kindergarteners at Kennedy-Powell Elementary in Temple, Texas. Ilana Panich-Linsman for The Texas Tribune]()
Credit: Ilana Panich-Linsman for The Texas Tribune -
School board races across Texas deal losses for many conservatives
Issues about control of book purchases and how curriculums teach race and gender have led to change on many boards, including Keller, Katy and Mansfield ISDs. Full Story
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![A Keller ISD school board meeting in Keller, TX on April 25, 2022.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune