The urban system, just off one of Los Angeles鈥� major freeways, was headed for state takeover and had a 58% graduation rate. When the opening was posted, 鈥淚 thought, 鈥楥ompton, I don’t want to be in Compton,鈥� 鈥� Brawley said.

But Brawley saw a 鈥減ocket of success鈥� at some elementary schools that he could build on. Accepting the job in 2012, he instituted a set of routines, like in-school tutoring and frequent multiplication practice. Weekly quizzes let teachers know precisely which students need extra help.

Fourteen years later, the district, with a 91% poverty rate, is one of the nation鈥檚 .

鈥淚f you go back 15, 20 years ago, Compton was not the place where most parents would have kept their kids,鈥� he said. In fact, it was the first district in California where families tried to convert a low-performing elementary school into a charter under a . 鈥淣ow, we see a reversal.鈥�

The district is also one of only 78, out of the nation鈥檚 500 largest, that has maintained consistent leadership at the top since the pandemic, according to a from ILO Group, a consulting firm. At the state level, all but seven have changed education chiefs at least once, with more turnover coming once new governors take office next year.

As in Compton, ILO鈥檚 data shows, students are better off when district leaders stay longer.

In those with no leadership changes between 2019 and 2025, kids performed better in reading and math 鈥� showing at least a month of extra learning 鈥� than those in districts with turnover. In women-led districts, the advantage was nearly two extra months of learning in math, based on the Stanford Education Data Archive, a comparable measure of student learning across states. 

鈥淪tability really matters within a community,鈥� said Julia Rafal-Baer, the ILO Group鈥檚 CEO. In those with high turnover, the kids who were in kindergarten at the start of the pandemic have likely seen multiple reading programs 鈥渙r their parents were asked to start one more strategic planning process. It gets old.鈥�

Other districts in the top 500, sometimes embroiled in controversy, have experienced multiple leadership changes since the pandemic. , for example, is on its fourth chief since 2020. Former Superintendent Devon Horton was on charges that he assaulted his wife in front of his two children. 

The East Baton Rouge district in Louisiana is also on its fourth superintendent since 2020, with current leader Lamont Cole facing charges for bribery and money laundering stemming from his time as a . He denies the accusations, and board members say they support him. But they鈥檝e also tightened up . 

Overall, ILO鈥檚 latest review shows that churn is down for the first time since the pandemic. Last year, it appeared that districts had reached a 鈥渘ew normal,鈥� with turnover ranging from 20% to 23% for five years straight. But this year, among the top 500, it has dropped to 17%, which is closer to the typical pre-COVID levels of reported by AASA, the School Superintendents Association.

Rafal-Baer cautioned that while the 鈥渃arousel of leadership seems to have slowed down,鈥� the results are just a snapshot. 鈥淭his isn’t a return to normal so much as the system finally catching its breath.鈥�

The decline in turnover, she added, could point to the current financial constraints on districts as they adjust to the end of federal relief funds and ongoing declines in enrollment.

鈥淭hese searches are very expensive,鈥� she said. A recently spent about $48,000 to find a new leader, while the Clark County district鈥檚 search in 2024 . 鈥淭here may be less of a desire to tell your community, when you’re cutting assistant principals, that you’re now going to spend money on a search firm.鈥� 

A 鈥榝lashpoint鈥�

Rachel White, an associate professor at the University of Texas at Austin, and founder of a on school superintendents, suggested the pandemic years were an anomaly. School board fights over COVID-related closures, masks and culture war issues 鈥渨ere obviously quite volatile,鈥� she said, and in multiple districts, led to superintendents being abruptly dismissed. 

That was 鈥渉opefully a once-in-a-lifetime flashpoint,鈥� she said. 鈥淢aybe school boards 鈥� are less likely to do away with the superintendent who they disagree with ideologically on one thing.鈥� 

Her own research on superintendent turnover echoes connections ILO made between student learning and consistent leadership. While studies prior to the pandemic showed of turnover on student outcomes, 鈥渃hronic instability鈥� can hit neediest students the hardest, White said. 

According to a new , she found that students in high-poverty districts with repeated leadership turnover were about two months of learning behind in math and six weeks behind in reading compared with those in systems with the same leader since 2019.

Leaders who stay in a district longer are more likely to transfer knowledge throughout the organization, she said, and often build up trust with the public.

鈥淭he longer a superintendent stays, the more people believe they are committed to that community,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou can take some risks. It鈥檚 really important to be able to say, 鈥楬ey, this might not work out, but I think there’s potentially some return on investment here.鈥� 鈥� 

Policy experts like to talk about 鈥渄urable鈥� learning and success for schools. , a senior fellow at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, says that not only is leadership churn 鈥渙ne of the greatest threats to durability,鈥� but that school boards need superintendents who view instruction as the chief priority, not just one of many initiatives.

Brawley, who was a science teacher and principal in other districts before moving into leadership, has such a 鈥渟trong convictions鈥� about improving math and reading, White said, that he鈥檚 been able to keep the district moving forward despite other political issues that superintendents often navigate. 

鈥淭here鈥檚 a real belief that these students are brilliant and they just need the right resources and a stable teacher workforce,鈥� she said. 

His methods aren鈥檛 popular with everyone. The Compton teachers union president has on testing. But Cecilia McDuffie, principal of Foster Elementary, said the emphasis on data, combined with practices implemented at all schools, has helped her students rise from the bottom.

On a recent morning, a week after school started, Foster students spent time responding to the writing prompt: What do you like about your teacher? Leaders increased their focus on writing 鈥� and significantly cut back on screen time 鈥�  after observing that students couldn鈥檛 recall what had been taught. 

鈥淲e know that writing elicits a connection,鈥� Brawley said. 鈥淚f you don’t write it down, you’re not really learning it.鈥� 

Foster was not a 鈥減ocket of success鈥� when Brawley arrived in Compton. In 2014, less than a quarter of students met or exceeded state standards in reading and math. Last school year, 77% of students scored that high in those subjects, and 73% reached that level in science, nearly hitting the goal of 75%.

McDuffie said that Brawley has created systems that will outlast him.

鈥淚f he were to leave tomorrow, I would know that I always need to have a plan. I need to always refine my plan based on data,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd I need to start all my interventions early. You can’t wait until March.鈥�

While ILO鈥檚 data captures the pandemic period, some districts, like Bridgeport, Connecticut, have experienced frequent turnover across a much longer period. Since 2005, the district has had eight superintendents, and former leader Carmela Levy-David left in late 2024 after a near-unanimous from the teachers union. Each transition 鈥渃arries some costs,鈥� said Joseph Sokolovic, vice-chair of the board. 

鈥淣ew leaders often bring new priorities, and different approaches to implement those priorities,鈥� he said. 鈥淐ommunity and board relationships must be rebuilt. Trust must be earned again.鈥�

But he said it鈥檚 important to put the instability in context. Two turnovers occurred while the district was . The district also has one of the highest-poverty rates in the state, and spends than wealthier districts like Greenwich, which has seen even in the past 20 years. 

鈥淣o superintendent, regardless of talent, can eliminate concentrated poverty or erase decades of economic neglect,鈥� Sokolovic said. With the district currently conducting another search, he said the district needs 鈥渁 leader willing to commit for the long term, someone who understands the complexities of an urban district and is willing to confront difficult issues directly.鈥�

鈥楻oute to the superintendency鈥�

School boards should also look for instructional expertise, said Rafal-Baer.

A women-owned organization, ILO Group keeps close track of where women are becoming district chiefs and their routes to the position. shows that women are twice as likely as men to have an academic post, like curriculum specialist, on their resume. But just a handful of current superintendents came from a position leading curriculum and instruction.

“Given where student outcomes stand right now, you would expect the academics seat to be the surest route to the superintendency. It turns out to be one of the rarest,鈥� she said. 鈥淏oards keep saying instruction is the priority. Their hiring says otherwise.”

Overall, 34% of superintendents in the top 500 districts are women, a 1 percentage point increase since last year and a 6-point jump since 2019. Fifty-one of the nation鈥檚 women superintendents are also a first of some kind in their districts 鈥� first woman superintendent, first Black woman or first Latina superintendent. California has the most, with 11 leaders who fit one of those descriptions, while Texas has six.

In 2018, when the Aldine Independent School District, near Houston, was looking for a new superintendent, two of the board members wanted a Hispanic leader. With a 73% Hispanic population, Superintendent LaTonya Goffney, who is Black, understood why. 

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 take it personally,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut I鈥檝e been intentional about building relationships and connecting with the community.鈥�

As another one of the 78 districts that has kept the same leader since the pandemic, more than neighboring districts to bounce back from academic declines. Too many inexperienced teachers was one reason, an . But the board gave Goffney more time and in 2022 through next year.

The district in state accountability rankings, but the number of F-rated schools has fallen from 21 since 2023, and the district鈥檚 overall score increased this year from .

Still, in a state where districts with low-performing schools are increasingly , Goffney feels constant pressure to show steady progress. As enrollment begins to decline in the state, the district sees competition not just from charter schools and a new private school choice program, but from neighboring districts trying to 鈥渃herry pick鈥� Aldine鈥檚 students, she said.

鈥淢y focus, she said, 鈥渋s on making sure that Aldine is the best choice.鈥�

In an effort to keep the Austin school district independent, Mayor Kirk Watson is pushing to close two chronically-failing middle schools that triggered the state鈥檚 takeover law. He鈥檒l need parents鈥� help to do it.

Watson鈥檚 plan, released in his newsletter Wednesday morning, cites a little-known state rule that would give weight to a parent petition asking for the schools鈥� closure.

Last month, both Webb and Burnet middle schools received preliminary fifth failing accountability ratings from the Texas Education Agency for the 2025-26 school year, triggering state intervention that could close the schools or see a board of managers replace the elected school board. Austin ISD has until Sept. 11 to appeal the preliminary ratings, but if either rating becomes final the state is mandated under law to intervene. The manner of intervention is up to Education Commissioner Mike Morath.

However, Watson cites a caveat in the state education code which mandates Morath follow the will of a parent petition submitted to TEA if the parents of a majority of enrolled students request closure of the schools instead of a district-wide takeover. The plan comes at a high-stakes moment for Austin ISD. TEA declined the district鈥檚 plan to avoid takeover by surrendering control of three failing schools to an external operator earlier this year. Watson told Austin Current he remained optimistic that takeover was not the only option left for Austin ISD and was in frequent talks with Austin ISD leadership over potential outcomes.

鈥淭exas law gives the parents at Webb and Burnet a powerful voice,鈥� Watson鈥檚 statement said Wednesday. 鈥淭hat gives this community a path to act instead of simply waiting for something to happen to us. It gives families most impacted a say in what comes next.鈥�

A to close the schools instead of taking over the district would have to be signed by the parents of the majority of students enrolled at each failing school and submitted to Superintendent Matias Segura for validation by Oct. 15. Segura would then have to submit a validated copy to Morath no later than Dec. 1. Morath would be obligated to order the action requested by the parents.

If Austin ISD鈥檚 board of trustees presents a written request to the commissioner opposing the parent petition, the commissioner could choose to side with the board.

Watson said if the state takes over Austin ISD, Burnet and Webb, as well as other unspecified district campuses, would likely be closed. He said, under his proposed plan, he trusts Segura and the board to create a new school in the $158 million building being built at the site of Burnet Middle School to serve the communities of the closed schools.

As proof of Austin鈥檚 progress, Watson cited the district鈥檚 rise to a B overall rating, its highest in years, in this year鈥檚 accountability ratings, as well as a 42% increase in A and B rated campuses since 2024.

It is not immediately known if Austin ISD leaders were involved in developing the mayor鈥檚 proposal, or whether the Texas Education Agency is aware of it. Austin ISD and the Texas Education Agency did not immediately respond to a request for comment at the time of publication.

Last week, Austin ISD spokesperson Cristina Nguyen told Austin Current that Austin ISD leaders maintain regular communication with the city鈥檚 leadership to keep them apprised of what is happening in the Austin school district.

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Gov. Greg Abbott the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board on Wednesday to work on pathways for students to earn bachelor鈥檚 degrees in three years.

Such a program could have college students take about 90 hours of classes instead of 120 to earn a degree, thus reducing the cost of higher education, shortening the time for degree completion and allowing the state to respond to workforce demands quicker, state leaders said.

鈥淭exas students are our future leaders and the workforce of tomorrow,鈥� wrote in a statement announcing the directive. 鈥淭hey deserve the option to receive a degree in a high-demand, high-wage field in less time as a means to reduce the overall cost of securing a degree.鈥�

Officials at the coordinating board must establish a working group to develop recommendations based on student demand, employer needs, institutional approval requirements and other needs.

The announcement comes amid a broader push by Abbott to address the affordability of higher education in Texas. He has mandated for public colleges and universities since the 2023-24 school year, and this week he expressed support for legislation requiring four-year universities to offer financial discounts to undergraduates taking summer classes.

鈥淓very semester adds tuition, fees, housing, food, transportation, and other living expenses and delays students鈥� ability to begin their careers,鈥� Abbott said .

Less than half of Texas undergraduate students at four-year universities earn their degrees in four years, and those from are far less likely to receive a degree or certificate, according to .

The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, the primary accreditor for many of the state鈥檚 public colleges and universities, three-year degree programs in December.

Texas Higher Education Commissioner Wynn Rosser said shorter pathways could help students enter high-demand fields a year earlier as well as lower the cost of college.

The nonprofit research group RAND 26 U.S. states have at least one college offering a three-year bachelor’s degree as of this spring, although the programs are largely concentrated in a few states.

Coordinating board officials plan to have public college and university administrators, faculty leaders and other stakeholders meet and submit recommendations to the governor鈥檚 office by Dec. 31. Abbott, who is running for reelection in November, said he would then work with lawmakers next year to establish the pathways.

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Education finance could learn a thing or two.

Policymakers intent on providing high-quality schools for everyone typically face a familiar problem: Variability in property taxes allows wealthier communities to send much more money to their local schools than those in poorer communities. That extra investment translates into opportunities that lower-wealth schools simply cannot afford. Education leaders across the country have tried to fix this by filling holes with state dollars. But they are faced with a common challenge: If local spending on education in high-wealth communities keeps rising, the bar for state contributions to poorer communities moves with it.

Many professional sports leagues grappling with similar issues of inequality have found a solution in salary caps that curb wealth hoarding and reward competitiveness. In the National Basketball Association, the salary cap is a set dollar amount that all teams must stay under to avoid a financial penalty. If my beloved Atlanta Hawks spent $100,000 above the threshold, for instance, they would pay an additional $100,000 as a luxury tax. These extra dollars would then be distributed to teams that have not spent as much, helping to level the playing field.

What could this policy look like in education? Vermont already has one in place. 

Like many states, Vermont calculates and guarantees a baseline amount of funding required to educate a standard student (which is adjusted by increasing funding for disadvantaged kids). But beginning in 1997, Vermont lawmakers adopted an additional process called the excess spending adjustment. If a town votes to spend more than the baseline per-pupil funding amount, it triggers the state’s version of the NBA鈥檚 luxury tax. Wealthy towns can still raise more money for their schools, but are then required to pay higher rates created in the funding formula. In Fiscal Year 2026, exceeded the $15,926 spending threshold.

The additional tax revenue raised by property-rich towns is distributed to property-poor, rural school districts to ensure their students get a more equitable education. Three years into implementation, that legislative provisions including the excess spending adjustment had significantly reduced the relationship among property wealth, student resources and taxpayer burden.听

What stops other states from following in Vermont鈥檚 footsteps? Policies like this do not come easily, and may require a shock to the status quo. The NBA salary cap and luxury tax were the result of difficult negotiations between the league and players. Vermont’s school funding mechanism was passed in response to a state Supreme Court ruling that the state’s previous education finance law was unconstitutional. Many wealthier residents expressed outrage at the new law 鈥� one going so far as to buy a car previously owned by one of the bill鈥檚 chief sponsors, bringing it to the state capitol and urging passers-by to to vent their frustration with the new law.

Interestingly, several of the financially affected by the excess spending threshold are not eligible to vote in Vermont: Many of its property-rich communities are ski resorts filled with second homes of out-of-state residents. This politically advantageous fact, paired with provisions that provided 229 of the state鈥檚 school districts with additional funding and only 23 districts with less, might help explain why the pushback was not strong enough to undo the law’s sweeping changes. Howard Dean, the incumbent governor, faced an opponent who tried to center the law as her chief campaign issue. Dean handily won reelection.

Vermont is not alone in structurally tackling this issue. Texas has , a state policy that requires wealthy school districts to send a portion of their local property tax revenue back to the state. In the 2024-25 school year, nearly was returned to the state under the program.

Policy advocates interested in finance equity policies should study these two states, and consider how private giving might circumvent any progress. 

In my work for , housed in the Southern Education Foundation, I regularly meet with education stakeholders across the country to imagine school funding and enrollment policies that undo the harm of intense segregation, specifically between districts. Income segregation leaves students in high-poverty schools with and few resources to meet them. Some state leaders treat the school district lines as impenetrable, for both students and dollars, leaving kids to the education provided by local property tax wealth. But every American has an affirmative right to public education, written into the state constitutions. Like the NBA power brokers of the 1980s and the Vermont lawmakers of the late 1990s, state legislators can work across lines of difference to devise a system where wealth hoarding is challenged. The ball is in their court.

Chronic academic underperformance at has the district in jeopardy of severe state sanctions.

Now, Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath will decide what intervention looks like for the . Morath must either close the struggling schools or replace the locally elected school trustees and superintendent with leaders of his choosing.

The state is leading the country in its use of such takeovers. While this kind of intervention has historically been a last-resort measure, Texas leaders have used it in recent years as a tool they say will improve student learning. In many cases, it is carried out .

Since 2023, seven districts 鈥� including Fort Worth and Houston 鈥� have had Morath replace their leaders.

What is a state takeover?

This intervention into public schools happens when the Texas Education Agency commissioner temporarily removes democratically elected local school trustees and replaces them with a board of managers he appoints. It is seen as the most severe formal state sanction for schools.

The managers assume school board duties, which includes approving budgets and tax rates as well as setting district policies on a range of issues from safety to instruction, according to state and federal law.

School boards hire superintendents to manage the daily operations of a district. The state education chief can 鈥� and often does 鈥� swap out a superintendent during a takeover. Even though Fort Worth superintendent Karen Molinar that parents said drove academic gains, Morath ousted her, signaling the state wanted a .

Why do takeovers happen?

Agency officials can step in due to persistent academic struggles, financial mismanagement or systemic corruption.

A 2015 law made it easier for TEA officials to intervene when campuses fail state academic standards. Texas grades public schools on how they are educating students, largely based on how students do on the state standardized tests. Five consecutive Fs at a single campus triggers state action.

At that point, the education commissioner must either close the school or replace the district鈥檚 elected school board with an appointed board of managers.

The campuses that trigger a districtwide takeover have . State Rep. grew up in Houston and was a student at Wheatley High School, the school that triggered the takeover in HISD.

The Democrat has said he wrote the 2015 law to force districts and the state to reckon with long-struggling schools.

The ratings that are the basis of recent takeovers largely come from the STAAR, which is being phased in response to concerns that it creates too much stress for students and takes up too much teaching time. It will be replaced with new assessments.

A district can be taken over multiple times. For example, TEA appointed managers in Beaumont ISD in 2014 because of financial mismanagement. It again seized control about a decade later over academic underperformance.

Before 2015, a commissioner already had the power to appoint a conservator to oversee a district or campus, while the district鈥檚 locally elected school board and superintendent remain in place. The commissioner can then appoint a board of managers in a district that has been under a conservator for two years.

Who is on the board of managers during a takeover?

A board of managers must be primarily made up of local residents, according to state law. Voters who live within the district鈥檚 boundaries can apply.

In past job descriptions, agency officials have stressed that the ideal candidates have experience in parent or neighborhood advocacy, social work, psychology, business, finance or law.

The essential job duties of managers include evaluating the superintendent and preparing the locally elected trustees to eventually assume their responsibilities again. The managers are required to hold public meetings under the Texas Open Meetings Act.

Meanwhile, the trustees can serve in an advisory capacity without decision-making power, like other community members. Local school board elections continue as normal, . Once the commissioner ends a state takeover, the most recently elected school board members will be phased back into governing the district.

How long do takeovers last?

Commissioner-appointed managers are typically in place for two to six years, TEA spokesperson Jake Kobersky has previously told the Tribune. The length of a takeover depends on how fast a district can meet the academic and exit goals set by the state commissioner.

After two years with managers, state law allows the TEA commissioner to restore local control if the failing campus gets passing grades on accountability ratings for two consecutive years. The commissioner can also extend the takeover.

Once it is determined that the campus or district has met standards, the commissioner can plan for a transition.

The Marlin school district, east of Waco, was under state control for seven years before TEA officials began to relinquish control to the elected school board in February 2024.

What can districts do to avoid a takeover?

In a rare case, the Wichita Falls school district met the bar of five Fs at a middle school for a takeover 鈥� but the commissioner allowed the district to keep its elected school board. While Wichita Falls was facing pressure to improve academic performance, the district adopted state-produced math materials and outsourced operations at the struggling campus to Third Future Schools, a charter network that focuses on turning around schools.

To get a break from harsh penalties and buy time before they are at risk of a takeover, school districts can hand over the management of underperforming campuses to charter schools or nonprofits. That鈥檚 because of a 2017 law that also gives the school extra dollars for the partnerships.

Austin ISD officials tried to enter such a partnership with a nonprofit Texas Council for International Studies. Agency officials rejected the bid, saying the group did not have a proven record of academic turnaround.

Do takeovers work?

Research suggests takeovers of public schools in the U.S. have been a mixed bag.

and saw academic gains and higher graduation rates after such interventions. But another found no evidence that the intervention led to improvements in student reading and math performance, up to almost a decade after it occurred.

In a Brookings Institute analysis, researchers found takeovers were especially harmful to student achievement when it took place in predominantly Black communities.

Houston ISD students have seen dramatic changes during the takeover, such as scripted, standardized lessons and higher pay for teachers. State-appointed leaders have pointed to improved student test results and progress on the state鈥檚 A-F accountability ratings in HISD as proof that the state intervention is working. However, the district has also seen an exodus of teachers and plummeting student enrollment.

Mar铆a M茅ndez contributed to this report.

The Texas Tribune partners with Open Campus on higher education coverage.

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Lt. Gov. on Wednesday vowed to pass legislation punishing public schools that do not remove graphic books from their shelves by knocking them down a notch in the state鈥檚 annual school performance ratings, which the state uses to seize control of underperforming districts.

Flanked by easels displaying printed covers of books he found obscene, the lieutenant governor said school boards and administrators have not been following a 2025 law aimed at weeding out lewd books from the shelves in Texas鈥� more than 9,000 campuses attended by some 5.5 million schoolchildren.

鈥淚t’s the law and we expect you to follow the law. So we’re coming for the books,鈥� Patrick said during a news conference at the Texas Capitol. 鈥淲e ask that you do it on your own and remove these books.鈥�

The , Senate Bill 13, granted school boards the authority to approve and remove books based on complaints they receive, such as those from parents and activist groups. Before, those powers largely belonged to school librarians. But Patrick said an overwhelming majority of school boards have not taken any action, as the law nears one year in effect.

Patrick said the books on display at his news conference 鈥� which he said are on the shelves of some Texas schools despite being prohibited in state prisons 鈥� were 鈥渟o filthy, so dirty, so vulgar, so pornographic鈥� that he refused to open them out of respect for the women in the room.

He insisted the state was not banning books.

鈥淭here are no books banned in America. You can buy any book you want to buy if you want it,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut we do not take taxpayer money and buy these books for our schools. 鈥�

As lieutenant governor, Patrick presides over the Texas Senate, a position that gives him immense power to set the chamber鈥檚 agenda and ensure the passage of his preferred bills. He confirmed that, under his proposal, schools could be docked an entire letter grade 鈥� going from an 鈥淎鈥� to a 鈥淏鈥� rating, for example 鈥� if they were found to have a single book on their library shelves that should not be there.

Such a law, which could streamline state takeovers, would be the newest frontier in a yearslong battle wielded by Texas Republicans against books that often explore LGBTQ+ and race issues.

Librarians and childhood literacy advocates have contended, throughout fights at the Capitol and in school board rooms across the state, that some of those books are important for students who may not see their lived experience reflected in other literature 鈥� and can鈥檛 afford to buy them.

Patrick noted at his press conference, however, that more than 90% of parents and grandparents would not want their kids seeing the books he was highlighting, some of which depicted masturbation and graphic images of genitalia.

Patrick is up for reelection and will face state Rep. , D-Austin, in November.

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Jaleel is attending his first day of classes this month at a middle school opening its doors for the first time that specializes in air traffic control, commercial drones and engineering.

His parents decided not to send him to the majority-Black, F-rated campus closer to their home in Fort Bend ISD. Still, they fear their sixth grader may lose out on the community and support that come with receiving an education alongside kids in his neighborhood.

鈥淭his is a very difficult thing,鈥� Mikole Montgomery, Jaleel鈥檚 mother, said of the choice to bypass . 鈥淚 don’t take the decision lightly.鈥�

Black children attend schools labeled as failing by the Texas Education Agency at a far higher rate than any other racial or ethnic group. Majority-Black schools are the least likely to achieve the state鈥檚 highest academic rating.

Of the roughly 300 such campuses last year, 20 received an A. By contrast, 105 scored a D or an F.

On Aug. 14, Texas releases the next round of school accountability ratings, largely based on how well students perform on the STAAR exam. Those ratings, promoted as a tool to identify and hold underperforming schools accountable, also serve as an annual reminder of Texas鈥� struggles to provide Black students a high-quality education, parents say.

That leaves families like Montgomery鈥檚 weighing whether to enroll their children in schools where they may benefit from rigorous academic opportunities but see fewer kids and teachers from their communities 鈥� or keep them on high-need campuses lacking in resources but abundant in love and understanding.

About 60% of majority-Black schools scored a C or better last year, which Texas defines as acceptable performance. By comparison, nearly all majority-Asian schools met that threshold, as did 91% of majority-white schools and 79% of majority-Hispanic schools.

Texas public schools educate north of 700,000 Black children 鈥� more than any other state in the country. And negative outcomes among a disproportionate share of majority-Black schools means thousands of kids could leave without the knowledge they need to thrive, even as state leaders often say that and have restricting the consideration of race in education policy.

Education Commissioner Mike Morath acknowledges that academic gaps between Black children and their peers have long existed in the state. However, he points to the preeminent showing Black students in Texas scoring higher than those in most of the country.

鈥淭hat being said,鈥� he added, 鈥渢he results are still unacceptable.鈥�

Texas must improve the quality of schools and support for all children 鈥� not just some children, Morath said.

鈥淭his is where the A-F indicators are important,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he state’s investment in this is to make sure that our local school districts are changing practices as rapidly as possible to improve these learning outcomes.鈥�

Meredith Anderson, a native Texan who researches K-12 education for the United Negro College Fund, sees the racial disparities in the state鈥檚 accountability ratings as 鈥渁larming.鈥�

Majority-Black schools tend to suffer from inadequate local and state funding, as well as from limited access to rigorous courses that help raise student expectations and learning, Anderson said. Schools broadly also do not employ enough , which can improve learning for all children, she added.

鈥淲e often think about it as more so academic gaps when we just look at the accountability ratings, without looking at some of the underlying causes that contribute to them and widen those gaps,鈥� Anderson said. 鈥淓ven if we have these bright spots, overwhelmingly the state isn’t serving our Black students well.鈥�

When Black parents choose not to enroll their kids in neighborhood campuses as a result, that could also mean the students who remain end up worse off.

Texas funds schools based on attendance, which means they lose money to pay for academic supports as families leave. That also often means the loss of involved parents and students who otherwise could help usher in improvements. Meanwhile, negative perceptions of majority-Black schools can contribute to a broader narrative that students at such campuses do not deserve positive attention or investment, parents and advocates say.

鈥淚 certainly recognize the value in these kids,鈥� Montgomery said. 鈥淚 recognize me sending my son to the other side, it says something about how I feel about the kids as well 鈥� whether it’s intentional or not.鈥�

Pressure to improve

The Texas Education Agency evaluated more than 9,000 campuses last year, with roughly 15% of schools receiving the lowest grades.

Of the 302 majority-Black schools in Texas, 35% scored a D or an F, by far the largest share of any racial or ethnic group. No majority-Asian schools received such ratings, while 8% of majority-white schools and 19% of majority-Hispanic schools did.

Texas grades schools based on three primary measures, including how well the campuses perform compared to those with similar percentages of low-income students. Schools typically receive a D or an F if only about a third of students or worse meet grade level on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness, or STAAR.

Alongside the reality that Black students in Texas are those most likely to and and the least likely to , many parents see the ratings as further evidence that the education system is failing their children.

鈥淚 don’t think it takes rocket science for folks to figure out,鈥� said Tyrone Howard, a UCLA professor who studies race and education. 鈥淚t’s the fact that the original sin of this country has always been around race 鈥� structural racism 鈥� and all its remnants still remain in place.鈥�

When a school receives five consecutive F ratings, Texas鈥� education commissioner must either replace the school district鈥檚 elected trustees and superintendent or close the campus. Schools that predominantly educate trigger takeovers most often.

Morath, the state鈥檚 education chief, believes that schools consistently receiving unacceptable ratings reflects a failure by local district leaders to sufficiently focus on student learning. The A-F rating system allows his agency to identify those districts and initiate reforms where necessary, he said.

Morath views Houston ISD as evidence that it matters who runs local schools, as Black students have posted large test score gains since he intervened in 2023. Critics of the takeover often accuse HISD鈥檚 commissioner-appointed superintendent of overemphasizing test scores. The critics question the sustainability of the gains given unusually high numbers of teachers and students leaving the district, especially Black children.

Eight of Texas鈥� A-rated, majority-Black campuses serve children in the state鈥檚 largest district.

Morath sees the academic gains as signals that state intervention works.

鈥淚n many cases, our schools are doing very well,鈥� he said of Texas public education. 鈥淏ut our schools need to get better, and they need to get better as fast as possible.鈥�

The Texas Tribune interviewed two Black former principals of D- and F-rated schools who shared details of their challenges on the job. The administrators asked to remain anonymous because they still work in Texas education and feared retaliation for speaking candidly.

The leaders acknowledge they sometimes failed to focus enough on student instruction and helping teachers improve. But that鈥檚 because they often had to extinguish other fires, such as abrupt staff departures, funding cuts and depleted morale.

Compared with predominantly white, Asian and more affluent campuses, the Black school leaders felt they lacked autonomy to make decisions that would improve learning. They say they missed out on community business partnerships, wealthy parent-teacher groups and instructional materials that reflected their students鈥� interests. They also dealt with students enrolling and leaving at high rates throughout the school year, making it difficult to maintain consistent standards.

There鈥檚 also pressure to improve ratings, not necessarily to ensure learning growth but to avoid state penalties, they assert. The Black campus leaders say their schools focused heavily on students most likely to improve their test scores, which meant little time to prioritize the academic growth of children who came to school hungry or without a jacket when it was cold.

鈥淓xternally, it looks like you鈥檙e a poor leader,鈥� said the former principal of an F-rated, majority-Black elementary school. 鈥淎ll you鈥檙e trying to do is serve your kids.鈥�

School officials can make a difference by listening to their local communities and, more importantly, fostering spaces where Black parents feel they can engage, education researchers say. That includes scheduling events at times when most families can participate.

Still, even the best school systems cannot overcome unsupported teachers or a lack of money to fund the initiatives students need, the experts note. Texas leaders must also recognize that addressing racial inequality cannot happen without honest conversations about race, the researchers say.

Legislators recently targeting diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in education. Republicans approved such measures out of a belief that schools focused more on gender and race than merit and instruction.

But some who study education contend that the unwillingness to address historical racism hurts Black students the most. Research repeatedly shows they benefit from having , while many Black families place high importance on their children reflected in the books they read.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 where I think the frustration is for a lot of parents, like, 鈥極K, how can I not name what I might believe to be the primary factor in why some kids don鈥檛 get opportunity?鈥欌�� said Howard, the UCLA professor. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just, to me, outright tragic that that鈥檚 where we are.鈥�

More than ratings

Having raised three children and volunteered in the community for more than two decades, Stephanie Brown considers Missouri City Middle School 鈥渢he best-kept secret鈥� in Fort Bend ISD.

What it lacks in resources, it makes up for in dedicated teachers and administrators, she said. Brown believes that if district leaders granted students access to benefits such as commercial drone classes or before- and after-school programs that other children in the district receive, Missouri City Middle School would see similar results.

Brown wants students to know that they are more than standardized tests and accountability ratings.

For the last two years, she has helped organize summer trips to a free engineering camp at Prairie View A&M University, where high school students and middle schoolers stay in dorms and learn about robotics and computer science. She wants to show Black families that they do not need to leave to find a quality education. And the community needs to realize that sometimes, it is not 鈥渂etter on the other side,鈥� Brown added.

鈥淲hatever the data is showing that we鈥檙e lacking, it needs to be on our campuses,鈥� Brown said. 鈥淲e should not have to seek outside resources in order to get it if this data has been showing this all over the country. Because think about it: God didn鈥檛 make one race smarter than the other. So what is really going on here? Where does it start?鈥�

In a statement to the Tribune, Fort Bend ISD officials said students at all of their campuses deserve access to a high-quality education, as well as the opportunities and support necessary to succeed, regardless of race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status or ZIP code.

鈥淭he district continually evaluates student needs, academic performance and campus resources to identify where additional support and intervention may be needed,鈥� district officials said. 鈥淔ort Bend ISD remains committed to providing equitable educational opportunities for all students and will continue working alongside our educators, families and community to strengthen student achievement across the district.”

, located southwest of Houston, educates about 78,000 students 鈥� 28% of whom are Black. In 2025, Fort Bend ISD moved up one letter grade to a B and had than in the previous year. Missouri City Middle School was 1 point shy of a D.

When state lawmakers more than a decade ago, Sen. worried that it would disproportionately penalize schools that lacked sufficient resources to achieve an acceptable rating. That aspect of the system continues to bother him, West said.

Given that Texas has fewer than two dozen A-rated, majority-Black campuses, the Dallas Democrat agrees with families who say the education system is failing Black children. But he disagrees with those who say Black parents should keep their children in schools that do not serve them.

鈥淚f they believe the best thing is to take them across the street, then fine. Let them take them across the street,鈥� West said. 鈥淯nfortunately, the downside is that a lot of kids鈥� parents can鈥檛 take their kid across the street, and they鈥檙e left in a desperate situation.鈥�

Local school leaders and teachers must do everything they can to provide a quality education for those kids, West added.

As for the failures of Texas public education, Montgomery said, 鈥淚 think the goal is to keep our kids uneducated.鈥�

That belief fueled her family鈥檚 decision for Jaleel to attend the new Amy Coleman Middle School farther away from their home. She believes Missouri City Middle School employs passionate educators who care about children, but she is concerned about how Fort Bend ISD officials distribute resources.

For example, Coleman has an aviation and aerospace program while Missouri City has one focused on first responders. Those are admirable professions, Montgomery notes, but kids already interact with police officers and firefighters. The disparity in offerings communicates to Black kids at Missouri City that they should not dream bigger, she said.

Montgomery witnessed a fight and misbehaving children while volunteering at the F-rated middle school last year, which she admits factored into her decision to enroll Jaleel elsewhere. But she also recognizes that Jaleel benefits from tutoring, summer programs and field trips that his parents can afford and have time to provide. Not all children in the community experience the same privileges, she noted.

And while Jaleel leaving his neighborhood causes her significant concern, her decision centered on providing him what she is convinced state leaders do not want him to have.

鈥淲hen we think about our son’s education, we think about moving out of Texas,鈥� Montgomery said. 鈥淚 don’t think that these people have my son’s best interests.鈥�

Disclosure: Prairie View A&M University has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in The Texas Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete .

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More than 85,000 families are participating in Texas鈥� private school voucher program during its first year, a number that could increase as state officials finalize enrollment data, according to .

White families make up the largest share of participants so far, as do those considered low-income, the comptroller鈥檚 office noted in the report released Monday. The report did not say how many students previously attended private school or received home schooling, although showed that 57% of families invited to the program fell into that category.

While it appears unlikely that the majority of first-year voucher recipients will come from public schools, the largest numbers of participating families live within the boundaries of some of the state鈥檚 most populous districts 鈥� with Houston, Dallas and Northside in the San Antonio area leading the way.

鈥淣o Texas child should be trapped in a failing school or forced to attend a school that is unable to provide the services they need to address disabilities such as dyslexia, dysgraphia or auditory processing disorders,鈥� newly appointed Comptroller Don Huffines said in a statement. 鈥淚 am committed to improving and growing this program so every Texas child can have the opportunity to reach their dreams.鈥�

Texas invested $1 billion in the program, making it one of the largest in the country. Republican state leaders made several key promises when it became law: that it would primarily benefit students with disabilities, those from low-income families and those longing to escape their neighborhood public schools.

However, state Sen. Sarah Eckhardt, an Austin Democrat running against Huffines in November, said the first voucher report听鈥減roves this program is a billion-dollar handout to exclusive private schools concentrated in big cities, while public schools across the state are underfunded and closing at an alarming rate.鈥�

As the program rolls out for the upcoming school year, children with disabilities make up roughly 24% of students, while pre-K families comprise 11% of participants, the most of any grade level.

And of the more than 122,000 families invited to participate, 85,344 accepted as of July 29. More than 121,000 students are on a waitlist.

Final numbers could change because some families have yet to accept or decline their invitations, according to the comptroller鈥檚 office.

State officials expect to have more complete data by early September, after hearing back from waitlisted families who received offers because others declined or did not confirm enrollment. First-year numbers could also shift during the school year if students drop out of the program.

Senate Bill 2 鈥� the Texas law creating the education savings accounts, or ESAs 鈥� required that the comptroller鈥檚 office submit an annual report to legislators summarizing demographic information of participating students by Aug. 1. Huffines, a former Republican state senator, was as the state鈥檚 new finance chief the same day.

Participating parents with a child in private school will receive about $10,500 annually. Home-schoolers can receive up to $2,000 per year. Children with disabilities qualify for up to $30,000 鈥� an amount based on what it would cost to educate that child in a public school.

The average per-student award is between $7,500 and $8,000, according to the comptroller鈥檚 office. Those numbers could fluctuate as participation changes.

Fewer than 30 students with disabilities received the full $30,000 award.

When lawmakers debated the program last year, Republicans argued that vouchers would benefit all Texans 鈥� not just white and wealthy families. Democrats worried that ESAs would drain resources from public schools as state funding is tied to attendance.

The state considered roughly in order of priority:

• Students with disabilities and their siblings in families with an annual income at or below 500% of the federal poverty level, which includes a four-person household earning less than roughly $165,000 a year (12% of applicants).
• Families at or below 200% of the poverty level, which includes a four-person household earning less than roughly $66,000 (32% of applicants).
• Families between 200% and 500% of the poverty level (29% of applicants).
• Families at or above 500% of the poverty level (22% of applicants). These families collectively can receive up to $200 million of the program鈥檚 total budget. Children who attended public school for at least 90% of the prior school year will receive priority within this group (5% of applicants).

Monday鈥檚 report does not include finalized numbers, though the early returns show that families in the first two tiers received the majority of the funding so far. About 68,000 students come from low-income households, 17,300 come from low-to-middle income families, and fewer than 30 come from the wealthiest group.

Roughly 41% of participating students are white; 28% are Hispanic; and 14% are Black. By comparison, 24% of Texas public school students are white; 53% are Hispanic; and 13% are Black.

About 60% of public school students are considered low-income, defined as a family of four earning $61,050 or less annually.

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A new legal challenge to Texas’ school funding system renews questions about what methods state leaders should use to ensure students in low-income districts and those attending campuses in more affluent communities receive an education on a level playing field.

The Midland school district voted to sue Education Commissioner Mike Morath and state leaders this week, focusing on a piece of Texas鈥� school finance system known as recapture or 鈥淩obin Hood.鈥� Texas courts have repeatedly found recapture in compliance with the state constitution 鈥� in 1995, 2005 and 2016, respectively.

But the latest challenge from West Texas represents decades-long frustrations Texas schools hold with state leaders鈥� approach to paying for public education. Despite new dollars approved last year, many districts have closed schools, shuttered programs and cut staffing in response to a funding crisis they say the Legislature helped cause.

Here鈥檚 what to know.

What is recapture?

Recapture, often referred to as 鈥淩obin Hood,鈥� passed into law in 1993 after the predominantly Hispanic and low-income Edgewood school district and dozens of other underfunded campuses sued Texas over significant disparities between the resources students in their communities received and kids who attended school in affluent neighborhoods.

Under recapture, school districts that receive more local property tax revenue than their state-determined need must send excess funds back to the state. The state then redirects that money to districts that struggle to generate local funding.

During the 2024鈥�25 fiscal year 鈥� the most recent with finalized data 鈥� 225 districts sent nearly $3 billion back to the state, according to data from the Texas Education Agency. That鈥檚 up from just over $1.4 billion a decade prior.

How much is recapture costing districts?

As districts鈥� local economies have grown, so has their property wealth 鈥� resulting in more districts sending money back to the state.

In 1994 鈥� the year after recapture passed into law 鈥� 34 school districts redistributed $131 million through the system, many of them in Texas鈥� wealthy suburbs, according to the Texas School Coalition, an organization advocating on behalf of recapture districts.

Since then, districts have sent roughly $45.5 billion in total recapture funds to the state 鈥� including those located in urban communities with high numbers of students in low-income households as well as from oil-rich areas.

Austin ISD sent more than $770 million back to the state during the 2024-25 school year, by far the most of any district. Austin has led the state in recapture payments for nearly 20 consecutive years, according to the coalition. Slightly less than half of the district鈥檚 students come from low-income households, though the number of children learning English and kids with dyslexia rank high above state averages.

West Texas鈥� Pecos-Barstow-Toyah ISD paid roughly $198 million, the second-largest amount. The Midland school district, which recently sued the state, paid the sixth-most at $92.4 million. Houston ISD, the largest district in Texas, paid the tenth-most at $55.5 million.

What are arguments for and against recapture?

Some property-wealthy districts argue that because Texas counts recapture as part of its funding contribution to public schools, elected state leaders use it not as a tool to improve resources for low-income students but rather as an excuse to avoid funneling additional money to the children most in need.

Frustrations with recapture are underscored by the reality that many Texas districts are sending money back to the state as they close schools, cut programs and navigate staffing shortages.

But without recapture, advocates fear, schools in property-wealthy districts would receive significantly more funding to educate their students than those in areas with low property values, potentially leaving underserved children worse off.

Some public education advocates argue that the problem is not with recapture but with inconsistent and unreliable state funding. Prior to the 2025 legislative session, for example, Texas schools endured six years without a boost to the pot of money schools can use to raise teacher salaries and cover operational expenses.

What is Midland ISD arguing in its lawsuit?

Located in a community rich in oil and gas, Midland will pay the state more than $83 million for recapture this school year, according to a draft of the legal filing. That represents 27% of the district鈥檚 $313 million generated locally.

Midland has consistently ranked top 10 in recapture districts over the last decade, according to the Texas School Coalition.

Midland school trustees contend that recent changes to Texas鈥� education funding system, dating back to 2019, unfairly deprived local communities of decision-making power over how they tax residents, instead granting much of that authority to the education commissioner.

Rather than allowing local school boards to set taxes within a certain range determined by the state, districts do so at the rate decided by the commissioner or risk losing state funding, they argue. Meanwhile, state lawmakers continue to impose requirements on how districts spend money raised locally, which the Midland trustees say prevents them from addressing their community鈥檚 particular needs.

Roughly 68% of the district鈥檚 students are Hispanic, while nearly 55% qualify for free or reduced-price lunch 鈥� the latter of which the state and federal governments consider a measure of poverty. The trustees argue that the number of students who come from low-income households shows that property wealth does not necessarily equate to educational wealth.

What is the broader political context?

State leaders have allocated tens of billions of dollars toward reducing the annual tax bill homeowners and businesses pay each year. They have also imposed tighter limits on how much local governments can increase taxes to pay for services such as public safety and parks.

The legal challenge to recapture from Midland, a community that reliably votes Republican, comes as top GOP leaders such as now push to . Several Texas House lawmakers and prominent conservative groups have embraced the approach, though finance experts warn doing so would prove costly and appears unrealistic.

Property taxes make up the majority of public school funding, while state dollars generally fill remaining gaps along with some federal aid.

Attorneys Kevin O鈥橦anlon and Kara Belew, meanwhile, will represent Midland ISD in the recapture lawsuit.

O鈥橦anlon represented the Texas Attorney General鈥檚 Office in Edgewood v. Kirby 鈥� the landmark school finance case that led to the creation of recapture. Belew has served as statewide budget director for Abbott, as one of the Texas Education Agency鈥檚 top finance experts and as a senior policy adviser for the conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation.

Disclosure: Texas Public Policy Foundation has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in The Texas Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete .

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As Texas schools face at least $600 million in federal funding cuts, multiple mental health programs, particularly those implemented in response to the pandemic and mass shootings, are at risk of losing funding.

School programs focused on chronic absenteeism, mental wellness and crisis services that were created in response to the Uvalde school shooting, as well as social workers and counselors, could all be on the chopping block.

Texas schools rely heavily on federal funding to support mental health programs. Data shows that two federal programs that are of being cut or account for 86% of the school mental health funding for more than 2,500 campuses statewide, according to Mental Health America of Greater Houston.

Bracing also for the impending expiration of COVID-19 relief funding, school districts and advocacy groups this legislative session had pushed for more money through a dedicated funding source for school mental health, but lawmakers did not approve it.

Currently, such funding is combined with school safety in the so-called school safety allotment in the state school funding formula, and school districts tend to prioritize the allotment on school security.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to get into a situation where I am asking, do I hire a police officer or do I hire a counselor? I want them both,鈥� said Adrian Johnson, superintendent for the Hearne school district.

The funding cuts and lack of progress on getting a statewide dedicated funding stream for mental health comes at a time when . The special legislative session starts July 21, but Gov. Greg Abbott has not assigned school mental health as a directive to lawmakers.

The funding crisis

Created in response to Uvalde, the federal helps fund two grant programs in Texas, the and the . The former implements mental health training and support in 60 high-needs districts and the latter helps 98 public school districts with case management tools that identify struggling students, as well as mental health personnel.

Almost three years later, the Safer Communities Act is losing over $1 billion spread across the country. Funds that were supposed to last until 2027 are expected to dry up by the end of this year.

This cut puts programs like , which deploys evidence-based mental health resources in three Central Texas school districts, at risk. The state homed in on those school districts because of their higher rates of community impacts from the pandemic and high rates of population growth.

The cut to the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act is just one in a series of proposed changes to federal funding for public education that will impact how mental health is addressed in schools.

According to an analysis from the , the freezing of five other federal programs that support public schools are expected to result in the withholding of approximately $600 million from Texas, more than 16.1% of the state鈥檚 federal K-12 funding. These funds have been used for a variety of services such as English language instruction and literacy, but also after school programs and summer programs focused on mental wellness.

Medicaid and CHIP are also facing cuts in the federal spending bill passed earlier this month, and both provide each year to school districts and local mental health authorities, enabling them to hire and retain mental health providers, offer preventive mental health screenings, and support students with disabilities using specialized services.

Separately, COVID-19 funds are set to expire this year , forcing some smaller schools to lay off staff or find alternative ways to keep the social workers and counselors hired during the pandemic.

The confluence of these cuts come as Texas lawmakers missed opportunities to properly fund school mental health this year.

During the legislative session that ended in June, Texas lawmakers agreed on a robust that adds $8.5 billion to the state鈥檚 public school system. However, most of it has been earmarked for teacher pay; with roughly $250 million being set aside for school support staff and mental health support staff are not necessarily included in the pay raise.

Over 70% of the schools that sustainable funding for school-based mental health staff and professional school counselors was the main barrier to having adequate resources to address student mental health needs, according to a survey of 2,690 schools by the .

鈥淲e are hopeful that this will translate to more dollars for mental health. But without any legislation currently earmarking those dollars, that is not a guarantee,鈥� Rebecca Fowler, the director of public policy and government affairs at Mental Health America of Greater Houston, said about the new school funding.

In 2023, wrote to the Texas Legislature, urging the creation and funding of a separate 鈥渟tudent mental health allotment鈥� because programs were not reaching enough students.

Only 13% of schools used the school safety allotment for mental health supports, according to the

by Rep. , D-Dallas, attempted to secure dedicated mental health funds, but it did not pass this year.

鈥淯ncertainty around different funding streams makes it hard to navigate these conversations about the future of mental health and young people,鈥� said Kate Murphy, director of child protection policy for Texans Care for Children.

Changing conversations

After the devastating school shootings in Uvalde and Santa Fe compelled lawmakers to prioritize mental health, such support has waned in the last few years. Mental health advocates have pointed the blame at the culture war happening in the Capitol, namely that lawmakers have suggested mental health programs in schools are diagnosing children and reinforcing LGBTQ identities without parental consent.

For example, by Sen. , R-Brenham, would have required parental consent for any psychological or psychiatric examination, testing, or treatment conducted on a student by a school employee. The bill had eight senators as sponsors, and although it died in the less conservative Texas House, it demonstrates the shift in the legislative conversation surrounding school mental health.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 think there is a uniform understanding of the role of behavioral health in public schools. Who should be providing support? When should support happen?鈥� Seth Winick, director of the , said.

Johnson, the Hearne superintendent, said he understands parents鈥� concerns but says schools are the best place to address mental health issues for Texas families who might not have the income or time to schedule mental health services. Until a better solution is proposed, school mental health needs support, he said.

鈥淲e have students pre-K through 12 sitting in the school system for 180 plus days a year, and we should take advantage of that by not only giving them a strong educational foundation but a strong mental health foundation,鈥� he said.

What does the future hold?

Without federal funding support, school districts will have to get creative in addressing mental wellness within their walls.

Johnson said his school district is focusing on partnerships not only with local mental health authorities and health agencies, but also with other school districts. He said his district shares staff and cut costs by joining in on a special education cooperative with four other districts and can be modeled in other parts of the state.

鈥淲e have 700 kids, a neighboring district might have 600 kids, and another district may have 150; we have to learn to work together to help lower some of the costs during these budget cuts.鈥�

Collaboration is necessary, Johnson said, but even that is at risk under current funding restrictions.

Some schools are unable to expand partnerships with programs like , which directly works with students to provide mental health support and address chronic absenteeism.

鈥淐IS is currently serving two campuses in our district, but we would definitely expand to have CIS serve all of our campuses if we had a state funded allotment that would help the district provide the matching funding that is needed to partner with CIS,鈥� Chris Smith, superintendent of the Brownfield school district, said. 鈥淲e just don鈥檛 have the funding available.鈥�

Rural and smaller schools also face laying off social workers and psychologists hired during the pandemic and eliminating programs to ensure they can retain teachers through raises instead.

鈥淲e are adopting a budget this year that鈥檚 probably going to have a $2 million deficit. We are dedicated to making sure mental health services are available and luckily have been able to sustain through partnerships, but it has been tough times with the economy, and schools are struggling to keep up with costs,鈥� Smith said.

The endless loop of putting mental health on the back burner until tragedy hits is unsustainable, according to education advocates, who say it鈥檚 time for funding dedicated to school mental health.

鈥淚 would like to have funding similar to what they said with police officers. You have to have a police officer on every campus, but that costs money yearly, and they provide. We should be doing the same with social workers and psychologists,鈥� Johnson said.

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The Texas State Board of Education on Friday adopted new social studies standards for the elementary and middle grades that take an America-first approach to history and feature Christianity more prominently than other faiths.听

While standards for several high school courses were approved, the board postponed the final votes on U.S, Government, World History and World Geography.听

In a separate vote, the board adopted a that includes biblical stories like Daniel and the lion鈥檚 den and passages from scripture, like the 23rd Psalm and excerpts from the Book of Exodus.

The Texas State Board of Education will vote Friday on a set of that have drawn fire and fervor for espousing pro-American views and Christian values. 

If approved, the vote would typically mark the beginning of a long, and probably divisive, process to design curriculum based on the standards. But 社区黑料 has learned that Education Commissioner Mike Morath jumpstarted the process a year ago, signing a $67 million contract with a Tampa-based consulting firm for a series of social studies instructional materials. The standards, with topics like the spread of Christianity and the role of religious freedom in America鈥檚 founding, dovetail with the controversial Bluebonnet reading program adopted in 2024, which also came under fire for the perception that it promoted Christian nationalism. A required reading list, including some biblical passages, is also scheduled for a Friday.

The contract, with MGT Impact Solutions, wasn鈥檛 accessible to the public for a year because the Texas Education Agency failed to submit it to the state legislature, as required by law, until April.

In a state where the education chief holds over schools, some board members feel left in the dark.

鈥淥f course, I had no idea,鈥� Staci Childs, a Democrat, told 社区黑料.

鈥淭hose agreements should be public knowledge,鈥� said Evelyn Brooks, a Republican. 鈥淭here should be a considerable amount of transparency because we’re dealing with public money.鈥�

Jake Kobersky, a spokesman for the agency, said MGT has been working from 鈥減ublicly available drafts鈥� of the new standards in preparation for the final approval. The contract wasn鈥檛 submitted to the legislature because officials 鈥渙riginally planned to award multiple contracts鈥� and were still negotiating with other vendors, he said. He declined to state whether officials made additional awards, but said the agency followed the standard contracting process. State law doesn鈥檛 require the board to approve requests for proposals or contracts.

鈥淭he State Board of Education has no role in this solicitation,鈥� he said.

The contract is the latest development in the state鈥檚 four-year quest to overhaul what students learn about history and government. In 2022, the board came close to . But like many red states, Texas had recently passed limiting classroom discussions on race and gender, and conservative groups argued the proposed standards were unpatriotic and violated the new law. The board voted to delay the revision until 2025. Now members have renewed the debate. call the standards 鈥渦nbalanced鈥� and say they lack diversity, while Republicans are pressuring the board not to dilute them with changes.

Kelsey Kling, a government relations specialist and policy analyst with Texas AFT, the teachers union, called the MGT contract 鈥渁 little bit of a cart-before-the-horse scenario.鈥�

鈥淚s this whole vote by the State Board of Education simply a formality for a curriculum that’s already been in the works?鈥� she asked. 

Supporters of the new standards, namely the powerful, right-wing Texas Public Policy Foundation, say they replace a vague in the current standards with a chronological study of history and would allow students to see how ideas and events build over time. 

But Democrats in and on have called for delaying Friday鈥檚 vote because the foundation paid the Texas Center at Schreiner University $70,000 to develop the standards. The center鈥檚 director, Donald Frazier, is a member of a on the rewrite. Robert Koons, a senior fellow at the foundation, is also an adviser.

鈥淕iven the scope and significance of this work, which impacts more than 5.5 million public school students across Texas, it is essential that the process remain transparent, objective, and free from undue influence,鈥� wrote the five Democrats on the 15-member board.

Brian Phillips, spokesman for the think tank, called the Democrats鈥� demand

Critics, like the American Historical Association, say the draft standards exclude major events throughout history from Africa, the Middle East and Asian countries, and minimize the effects of racism and the contributions of women. In April, the board deleted a standard that would require students to learn about Muslims鈥� role in developing astronomy and algebra.

But conservatives, like state Sen. Mayes Middleton, called the statements 鈥渁 clear victory for pro-America, pro-Texas education.鈥�

Students, he wrote in a letter to the board, must 鈥渞eceive an honest understanding of the ideologies and threats that shape the modern world, including the evils of Sharia law, the realities of Islamification, and the documented threat of Islamic terrorism.鈥�

Some in the state are frustrated with Morath鈥檚 outsized role, with support from Gov. Greg Abbott and the state鈥檚 GOP leaders, in directing what students learn. Critics say a top-down approach to curriculum is wrong for such a large, diverse state. 

State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, a Democrat running to unseat Abbott in November, said that if she wins, one of her first moves would be to , who has served for 10 years. 

鈥楶olitical interests鈥� 

But the legislature in 2023 to enter into contracts with groups like MGT to develop open educational resources and pay districts up to $60 per student if they adopt them. Morath argues the state-owned materials will improve test scores and ground students in 鈥渃lassic works,鈥� including the Bible, he told 社区黑料 in 2024. 

That was the process the state followed when it originally purchased reading materials from Amplify, a curriculum provider, during the pandemic. Under an $84 million contract with Public Consulting Group, a Boston-based firm, the state made sweeping changes to the program, adding biblical passages like the Prodigal Son and the story of Queen Esther. PCG brought in conservative groups, like Hillsdale College and a media company founded by Mike Huckabee, now ambassador to Israel, to work on the materials. 

Some educators argue that Bluebonnet has of the world with lessons on figures like King Solomon and say critics have overreacted to the biblical material. 

The Amarillo Independent School District is among those using the Bluebonnet reading program. Jennifer Wilkerson, assistant superintendent, said she appreciates that the social studies lessons will cover some of the same topics. 

But the top-to-botton revision of the social studies standards, with a planned 2030-31 roll out, was bound to attract controversy and, if adopted, will require major shifts for teachers.

鈥淎ny time you do a complete overhaul of standards, it begins to be about political interests and not about what’s best for kids,鈥� she said. She鈥檚 among the hundreds of educators, parents and advocates who have traveled to Austin to address the board. In April, she said, arguments over the standards 鈥済ot so intense, that there were shouting matches happening outside of the boardroom.鈥�

The temperature of the crowd was similar in 2024 when the board adopted Bluebonnet. And as with the MGT contract, board members were largely unaware the work was underway until the state unveiled drafts of the reading lessons. 

says that an agency can鈥檛 spend money on a contract over $10 million until it notifies the , which provides oversight of state government and develops budget recommendations. That notice is supposed to come within 15 days of when a contract is awarded. 

Whether the agency was still considering other bids 鈥渄oes not have an effect on determining when a contract is to be reported,鈥� said Dushyanth Reddivari, assistant general counsel and the communications officer for the budget board. 

A Texas Education Agency shows that as of Tuesday, the state has paid MGT over $1.8 million on the contract since Nov. 19.

Worth over , MGT has a big footprint in Texas and is represented in the legislature by Daniel Hodge, a who previously served as Abbott鈥檚 . The company has multiple contracts with state agencies and universities for projects ranging from economic impact studies to software services. In K-12 education, the firm specializes in . 

MGT directed questions about the contract to the state agency.

The contract, which includes work on multiple subjects, listed several organizations as potential subcontractors, including TNTP, a New York City-based nonprofit, and Success Academy Charter Schools. Ann Powell, a spokeswoman for Success Academy, said the network, also in New York, is not involved and didn鈥檛 know it was named in the contract. 

Kathryn Zielony, a spokeswoman for TNTP, said there鈥檚 a potential the organization could work on the project, 鈥渂ut there is currently no finalized contract in place.鈥�

Kobersky, the Texas Education Agency spokesman, said MGT is still in the 鈥減lanning phase.鈥�

But Rabbi Joshua Fixler, who has three children in the Houston schools, suggested one reason why supporters of the standards are adamant about the board rejecting any last-minute revisions is because the work is already under way. He spoke to the board on Monday with concerns about items related to Christianity in both the social studies standards and the reading list.

鈥淚f work is already happening behind the scenes using these proposed [standards] that haven鈥檛 even passed yet to build curriculum,鈥� he said, 鈥渋t would make sense that the message would be 鈥楧on’t change this.鈥� 鈥�

It’s a structural problem that explains why community engagement efforts in schools so often fall short. School staffs are already stretched thin. Teachers and principals do not have time to manage unpredictable volunteers, coordinate one-off partnerships or repeatedly onboard outside groups that disappear after a single event. Even well-intentioned community support can become a burden if schools are forced to organize it themselves.

In 2017, leaders in the Dallas Independent School District and a local nonprofit, , began approaching this challenge differently. Instead of treating community engagement as outreach, they treated it as infrastructure.

The idea was straightforward: If communities wanted to help schools, someone needed to build the operational systems that would make that help useful, consistent and geared to what educators actually wanted.

That meant creating processes that sound more logistical than inspirational. Principals identified specific school needs. Philanthropies filled funding gaps. Volunteer roles were clearly defined. Literacy tutors followed the district curriculum and were scheduled regularly during class time. Schools did not have to invent partnerships from scratch every semester.

Eight years later, in the 2024-25 school year, 2,064 volunteers gave more than 13,200 hours across 103 United to Learn partner schools in Dallas. These included 140 educators-in-training who collectively delivered 15,000 hours of tutoring to 800 students across 23 Title I schools. Other volunteers, donors and corporate partners have supported projects identified by school leaders, including gardens, community pantries, refreshed libraries with hands-on learning and makerspaces, STEM labs and outdoor areas. This coordination matters because it helps ensure that community support strengthens the work schools were already doing, rather than creating additional layers for educators to navigate.

Here’s what this model looks like in practice:

On a Tuesday morning, college student Oscar Ya帽ez arrived before the first bell at Bethune Elementary, six minutes from his house, to work with second graders on phonics. As an education major working in United to Learn’s Aspiring Teachers program, he is paid, has a regular schedule and was trained in the district’s reading curriculum before he ever sat down with a child. Because Oscar visits the school three times a week, the kids at Bethune know him. When he graduates in December, he hopes to apply for a full-time teaching position at the school. According to fall-to-spring i-Ready assessment data, 91% of participating students improved their overall reading scores, and 62% advanced at least one full grade level in reading proficiency.

Clinton P. Russell Elementary had a state accountability rating of D two years ago. After the district promoted Chara Pace to principal, she led efforts to strengthen school culture, build camaraderie among colleagues and help teachers deliver high-quality curriculum more effectively. This built greater confidence, collaboration and trust. With intensive support from United to Learn, Russell has climbed to an A. Pace credits the partnership and its volunteers, along with a leadership development program that addresses leaders’ mental health and helps to avoid burnout.

At Esperanza “Hope” Medrano Elementary, more than 100 volunteers came together to set up a community pantry and outdoor garden, a project conceived by fifth-grade teacher Karina Solis 鈥� the great-granddaughter of the woman the school is named after. The school was able to shape a project that meant something to its own history.

The district鈥檚 role in all this matters enormously. Many districts struggle to translate community interest into support that is actually useful to schools. In Dallas, district leaders made a deliberate choice to open doors rather than keep people out. Early conversations between the district and the team that would later form United to Learn centered on a few simple questions: What did schools need and how could the community help? Together, they created a clear path for ongoing sustainable support aligned with school priorities. This approach is particularly important for historically underinvested schools whose leaders often hear promises from outside organizations that fail to materialize. School leaders in Dallas say this consistency matters as much as the individual projects themselves.

Maintaining it across what are now more than 124 schools is ongoing work. Schools’ needs differ, resources are finite and sustaining trained volunteers and long-term relationships across so many schools and communities requires constant coordination and adjustment. Dallas鈥檚 experience does not offer a simple formula, and it cannot be replicated through a single volunteer day or short-term initiative. 

Aldeman’s piece concludes by asking whether anyone is willing to build the infrastructure to convert the care communities feel for their local schools into something sustained and measurable. 

Dallas suggests one possible answer. Community engagement becomes more effective when schools are not asked to carry it alone. Like curriculum, transportation or staffing, partnership itself requires infrastructure. Without it, community support can remain episodic and symbolic. With it, schools may gain something more durable: consistent capacity serving what students, educators and school communities actually need. It is possible to break the pattern. The question is whether other districts are ready to try.

The influx of nearly $8.5 billion to Texas schools last year was not enough to stop schools from making tough cuts, district officials told state lawmakers during a Capitol hearing Monday. 

School leaders across Texas have already had to eliminate jobs and close campuses because of financial pressure. The El Paso district, for example, faces a nearly $53 million budget shortfall and may soon , while the Crystal City district in South Texas recently told families that it has in its bank account. 

At a House Public Education Committee hearing on Monday, school officials said they were still plagued by financial pressure even after the Legislature with new money for teacher pay, educator training and special education in the largest one-time public education investment in recent memory. 

As part of House Bill 2, school districts like Navarro ISD saw an increase in their base funding, or basic allotment, by just $55 per student. Paul Neuhoff, chief financial officer at Navarro ISD, urged state lawmakers to grow that pot of money, which the district counts on to keep up with the cost of school facilities, staff benefits and transportation. The nearly $300,00 the Navarro ISD received in total base funding fell short, Neuhoff said.   

鈥淭his is an essential help that we need,鈥� Neuhoff told lawmakers. 鈥淥ur utilities have increased close to 60% since 2019, [teacher retirement] payments have gone up 62% since 2021. 鈥� The average cost per mile operating our buses was $3.90 a mile, and that’s before the now-spike that we have in diesel prices.鈥�

HB 2 also increased teacher pay based on years of experience and districts’ enrollment, and it expanded Texas鈥� , allowing more teachers to qualify for raises. 

Alejos Salazar Jr., superintendent of Lasara ISD, said he has tried to get extra pay into the pockets of support staff like librarians and school nurses by scheduling them to teach part-time. 

鈥淭he librarian, for example, we make sure that she’s got classes scheduled half the day, so we can make sure that we can tap into that money for her,鈥� Salazar said. 鈥淏ecause if we don鈥檛 鈥� then other people, other sectors of your employment group are left out 鈥� and we value all of them.鈥� 

Even with the financial investments from HB 2, school leaders are struggling to keep their staff employed. Salazar said Monday he can鈥檛 find money to fix issues as small as scoreboards on baseball and football fields.

鈥淚 can’t sit here and say that with the certain funding that we receive, we’re doing great, because we aren’t,鈥� Salazar said. 鈥淲e live, figuratively speaking, paycheck to paycheck.鈥�

On her second to last day of school, Rachel Preston was notified by her school principal that Austin ISD could only afford to keep her part-time French teacher. The district is eliminating hundreds of jobs as it faces a $181 million budget shortfall.听Preston wanted to stay on but had to find a second job to make it work.听

鈥淭his funding deficit is the final straw for me, and it will be for countless other educators across the state who must leave or who lose their jobs as class sizes rise, enrollment in public schools drop, and neighborhood schools close,鈥� said Preston, who broke down explaining her situation to her students.

The financial crises school districts are facing are in large part due to , triggered by low birth rates, more schooling options and fears regarding immigration enforcement. Public schools receive funding based on attendance, meaning they receive less money if fewer students show up to class. Experts expect those enrollment numbers to continue to decline after lawmakers greenlit education savings accounts, often called vouchers, that allow families to use taxpayer funds for private school or home schooling. Inconsistent funding from the Legislature has also played a role. Prior to , Texas students endured six years without their schools receiving comprehensive funding increases.  

Also on Monday, TEA officials testified that the agency recently updated its hold-harmless calculations to prevent duplicate payments for the same revenue loss. The change resulted in an estimated $28 million decrease in funding across seven school districts, including Houston and Dallas ISDs, challenging districts that had already planned their budgets around earlier projections.

The comprehensive school funding package also included a clause requiring that districts phase out uncertified educators and provided financial incentives for teachers who go through high-quality training programs.

Lawmakers also approved significant changes to how Texas pays for special education. Starting next school year, districts will receive money for students with disabilities based on the needs of each child, as opposed to the classroom setting the school assigns them to. 

The state now must reimburse districts $1,000 for each evaluation of a child suspected of having a disability, which can cost between $1,000 and $5,000 or more to complete. Districts completed about 178,000 evaluations last year, which means TEA is estimated to disperse about $178 million a year.

Public schools must also conduct and pay for the of families wanting to participate in the new voucher program if they request one. 

Kami Finger, an assistant superintendent with Lubbock ISD, urged lawmakers Monday to reconsider the requirement to conduct evaluations for families interested in vouchers because of the additional workload it produces, especially to support children already in private school.  Lubbock ISD taps its general fund to make up a $3.5 million shortfall in state special education funding, Finger said. 

Texas鈥� voucher program launches next school year, which could result in additional funding losses if students leave their campuses for other options, public school officials have noted.

Legislative budget experts that about 24,500 public school students would initially leave for private schools due to limited space. Of almost recently invited to join the voucher program, 57% previously attended a private school or homeschool.

This first appeared on .

Danielle Minnis can demonstrate what putting students first looks like after 20 years in the classroom, bolstered by rigorous self-evaluation.

If children fall asleep during a lesson, change the pacing. If a kid with dyslexia feels humiliated reading aloud to peers, do not force them to do it. If 60% of the class passes the test, fantastic. But focus on what could have helped the 40% who struggled.

鈥淵ou start with where your students are, and you set goals. You do your lesson; you analyze your data; and then you adjust and you reflect,鈥� said Minnis, who teaches eighth-grade reading to students with disabilities at Legacy Middle School in San Antonio. 鈥淎 lot of times, teachers teach to the middle rather than looking at the outliers, because the outliers can be scary.鈥�

Minnis credits her approach to National Board Certification, often recognized as the most respected and demanding teaching certificate in the country. Roughly 鈥� less than 1% 鈥� hold the credential. The state rewards those who earn it with salary raises of up to $9,000 under a pay-for-performance program known as .

But that could change by the end of the year as state leaders question the credential鈥檚 worth.

Texas鈥� new, nearly requires the State Board for Educator Certification to evaluate whether National Board Certification aligns with state law. The state board will determine if the national certificates will continue to qualify educators for raises under the Teacher Incentive Allotment.

During legislative debates last year, a prominent Republican state senator said the national certificate did not align with Texas’ goal of rewarding teachers based on merit. Other elected officials have since argued that the National Board’s emphasis on equity conflicts with state mandates prohibiting such practices.

鈥淭here’s this thing about, 鈥榃ell, Texas knows what鈥檚 best for Texas,鈥欌�� said , D-Houston, a supporter of the national certificate. 鈥淭hat seems to be part of the problem that we’ve got, without recognizing that we don’t need to reinvent the wheel.鈥�

About 620 nationally certified educators receive Teacher Incentive Allotment raises, according to the Texas Education Agency. Teachers say revoking the certification as a pathway to salary increases would show that Texas leaders do not value the highest quality of teaching 鈥� that is, those who center their practice on the most important person in education: the child.

鈥淚t literally makes you a better teacher,鈥� said Minnis, who attained the credential in 2010. 鈥淥ne of the most important things in national certification is: How does a teacher create a safe, equitable learning environment for all students?鈥�

Teachers sum up the National Board Certification process in two words: writing and reflection.

The program measures whether educators understand the content they teach, their effectiveness in evaluating what students need and their ability to keep children engaged and help them learn.

Teachers have five years to complete the certification. They demonstrate their effectiveness through a computer-based assessment of multiple-choice and free-response questions. They collect samples of students鈥� work and specify how they will help each grow. They videotape themselves during class instruction, analyzing each decision and interaction. They detail how they serve as leaders and collaborate with colleagues. They scrutinize test results, identifying patterns and adjusting instruction.

鈥淚t was harder than my master鈥檚,鈥� said Keke Powell, a second-grade teacher in the Hays school district. She earned her national certification last year. 鈥淵ou have to be able to really be elaborate and specific on what you’re trying to say. Whoever is reading your story, if they cannot paint a picture of what you’re trying to do and say, then it needs to be fixed.鈥�

During the 2025 lawmaking session, legislators boosted educator salaries based on years of experience and district size. They funded training programs and enacted a ban on uncertified teachers. And they expanded the Teacher Incentive Allotment 鈥� which serves roughly across more than 800 school districts 鈥� so more educators could qualify.

Before agreeing on a review of National Board Certification, the Texas Senate proposed phasing it out of the state鈥檚 pay-raise program. Former state Sen. Brandon Creighton, a Conroe Republican who crafted the bill, acknowledged that teachers invested time and money in the certification.

But the certification did not align with the spirit of the Teacher Incentive Allotment, Creighton said during a February 2025 Senate floor debate. Removing it would ensure that Texas compensates teachers based only on their daily performance in the classroom, he noted.

鈥淚t’s a low percentage of teachers that are applying for that or working within that framework now,鈥� Creighton said at the time, referring to the national credential. 鈥淲e stuck with a framework that is generally merit-based across the board.鈥�

Months later, during a Texas State Board of Education discussion, some Republicans offered more concrete reasoning for their objections to the National Board: references to diversity, equity and inclusion.

鈥淎bout 10% of the training that a teacher would go to is based on DEI, gender identity and sexual orientation 鈥� and how to help transition children 鈥� which violates our state law and violates parental rights,鈥� board member Julie Pickren said during the April meeting.

Pickren pointed to a National Board document that details standards the most accomplished teachers hold themselves accountable to. The explains how such teachers cultivate learning spaces inclusive of all children and offers examples of what that could look like in practice.

Pickren read aloud an excerpt: Teachers design and implement lessons that help students develop awareness of, sensitivity to, and respect for others. For example, accomplished teachers are aware that children may begin to question their sexual identity at a young age. Teachers know that acceptance of their curiosity will make them feel safe and secure. In such instances, teachers may feature children鈥檚 literature in which diverse gender roles are portrayed.

The Houston-area Republican said focusing on equity and inclusion would confuse Texas teachers and conflict with federal and state requirements that schools avoid educating students about gender identity and sexual orientation.

But 鈥渘one of that is true,” said Peggy Brookins, president and CEO of the National Board.

Brookins clarified that the National Board does not train educators 鈥� on sex, gender or any topic 鈥� nor does it assign learning materials.

The certification is based on evidence teachers submit showing how they adapt to their students鈥� needs, she emphasized. The board evaluates how that aligns with what accomplished instructors and education experts deem best practice.

Contrary to Pickren鈥檚 concern about violating parental rights, for instance, the national standards highlight that accomplished teachers communicate frequently with parents about their children鈥檚 education.

Nevertheless, Brookins asserted that not every example written for teachers 鈥� such as the one Pickren referenced 鈥� applies or makes sense in the differing educational and political environments of each state.

鈥淲e do not engage in politics. We engage in policy,鈥� Brookins said. 鈥淎nd the policy is to help teachers go through the process of board certification, to work with states to say, 鈥楬ow do we make this happen in support of teachers becoming accomplished teachers?鈥欌��

Alayna Siemonsma, a 28-year educator who coordinates services for students with dyslexia in the Montgomery school district, considers National Board Certification 鈥渢he best professional development I’ve ever had the opportunity to be a part of.鈥�

鈥淚 would hope that people in those positions 鈥� like our lawmakers, like our State Board of Education members 鈥� would reach out to people who are nationally board certified,鈥� Siemonsma said, 鈥渁nd have conversations with them directly about what this process entails and how it has made an impact on our craft, on our teaching, on our colleagues, and, of course, on the growth of the students that we serve.鈥�

A Texas Tech University report found that Texas students taught by nationally certified teachers experienced about 3.5 months of additional learning in math and 1.5 months in reading. Low-income students, children learning English and kids scoring below grade level saw the most significant boost in test scores. The report found that students experienced an 18% reduction in the likelihood of suspension and a 10% decrease in chronic absences.

The researchers recommended that Texas continue to recognize the national certificate in the Teacher Incentive Allotment.

The National Board has long prepared teachers to support students who historically need more support, lead researcher Jacob Kirksey said in an interview.

鈥淯nderstanding that they have historically understood ways to prepare teachers to support these populations is something, again, worth considering from the state level,鈥� Kirksey said.

Lawmakers required the State Board for Educator Certification to decide by Dec. 31 whether to continue including the national certification in the allotment. The Texas Education Agency, which works closely with the board, contracted with six educators to complete the review.

Agency officials did not provide information on the reviewers when asked by The Texas Tribune.

According to a recent presentation to the state certification board, the evaluators have collective expertise on National Board Certification, can interpret Texas law and know state standards for learning materials.

If the board revokes it from the state program, teachers could still earn pay raises for their students鈥� academic growth 鈥� but only as measured by their districts鈥� standards. The board could also conduct a subsequent review of the national certification and reinstate it at any time.

Still, nationally certified teachers question why state lawmakers decided on the current path.

Dropping National Board Certification from the incentive program would mark a sharp reversal from just four years ago, when lawmakers pushed for its continued inclusion and that educators with the credential receive more money than currently allocated.

Teachers see the upcoming decision as a simple math equation: If National Board Certification equals positive student outcomes, they deserve pay raises.

鈥淚 always just take it back to, everybody should be more educated about what good teaching looks like and how all teachers can make a difference,鈥� said Minnis, the eighth-grade reading teacher. 鈥淚 would ask everybody who has a stake in this. What do you think accomplished teaching looks like? What are we looking for? What are your standards? Why do you think somebody should get TIA?鈥欌��

鈥淲hat’s going to be funny,鈥� Minnis added, 鈥渋s it鈥檚 always going to go back to, 鈥極h, like the national standards.鈥欌��

This first appeared on .

Adrian Moore was sharing a blanket with his friends, watching the sun come up over Morton Ranch High School before the first day of his senior year. Parents and teachers milled among the teenagers, overseeing the 鈥淪enior Sunrise鈥� tradition to kick off the semester. The principal approached Adrian鈥檚 mom, Julie Johnson, looking pained. She told Johnson that due to a recent change to Texas law, this year teachers and staff would be required to call her son by the name on his birth certificate 鈥� a name he had never used in his entire time in Katy Independent School District. 

The hope and promise represented by the Senior Sunrise event went cold, as Adrian and his friends wondered what lay ahead. They鈥檇 heard about a new 鈥渁nti-DEI鈥� law when it passed. It wasn鈥檛 the first time they鈥檇 been the targets of state or local policy, but they鈥檇 thought it might be possible that while the school board and politicians debated, their lives would carry on relatively undisturbed. 

鈥淚 couldn鈥檛 conceptualize how much it would change things until it happened,鈥� Adrian said. 

This marked the first school year under Senate Bill 12, the Texas law prohibiting schools from 鈥渁ssistance with social transitioning鈥� through the 鈥渁doption of a different name, different pronouns, or other expressions of gender that deny or encourage a denial of the person 鈥檚 biological sex at birth.鈥� The law also prohibited clubs 鈥渂ased on sexual orientation or gender identity.鈥� 

Adrian came out as transgender in seventh grade, right as the family moved into the suburban Texas district known for good schools. He chose the name Adrian and began his life in the school district using he/him pronouns. 

Before SB 12, using a name and pronouns different from his birth certificate had not always been seamless. His birth name showed up on legal documents, which sometimes meant that a class roster would need to be amended. But no one made a big deal about it, he said, even as Katy ISD became a flashpoint in the culture wars that have gripped Texas schools since 2021. 

In the potent cocktail of backlash over COVID-19 protocols and the Black Lives Matter movement, parent groups like Moms for Liberty and conservative lawmakers came after library books and classroom curriculum they felt encouraged LGBTQ+ identity, among other things. Katy ISD in particular became infamous for book banning. The district lists 107 books from libraries since 2022, and watchdogs reported that more than with LGBTQ+ themes and characters were not formally banned, but were made inaccessible to students. In 2023, his sophomore year, Adrian spoke at a school board meeting about the new district policy banning pride flags and requiring teachers to report if a student asked to change their name or pronouns. 

But even though the politics raged around him, he said, his teachers and school administrators had never faltered, and he felt secure in his place in the student body. 

Choir was his 鈥渆verything.鈥� Occasionally he would compete in interscholastic theater competitions in a male role. In the big spring shows, especially musicals, he was often cast in a female role because of his vocal range, but in the program accompanying the show, along with award ceremonies, he was Adrian. 

鈥淚鈥檇 rather play a male part, but I鈥檓 aware that as a performer, I do better in a female role,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 treat it like drag.鈥� 

Adrian, who has autism, sometimes found it easier to relate to teachers than peers, often relying on his teachers to help him navigate the subtle currents of adolescence. By his senior year he had several teachers whom he considered close mentors. 

But on the first day of school under the new SB 12 policies, he said, those relationships and sense of home had already begun to change. 

The teachers had been told what they could not do, but they had not been told what to do instead. Mostly Adrian just asked them to call him by his last name 鈥� a solution some schools around the state have used rather than deadnaming, calling a transgender person by the name they no longer use. 

Some teachers preemptively told Adrian they were frustrated, that their hands were tied. One cried. One teacher approached him in the hall, looking anguished. 鈥淲hat am I supposed to do?鈥� the teacher asked. While he appreciated their expressions of solidarity, he said, 鈥淚 was kind of put in a position to have to reassure my teachers.鈥� 

As the year went on, some teachers would test the boundaries to see if the storm had blown over. One signed him up for a University Interscholastic League competition under 鈥淎drian.鈥� But Adrian heard the teacher was reprimanded by administrators, and the name was changed. 

Meanwhile, his parents tried to get a doctor鈥檚 note saying that the chosen name and pronouns were medically necessary for Adrian鈥檚 mental health. They tried to get a 504 plan, a special education policy that creates classroom accommodations, making the case that because of Adrian鈥檚 autism, the chosen name and pronouns were essential to his learning environment. Nothing worked. There was one option left: sue Katy ISD and the Texas Education Agency, asking a judge to stop the implementation of SB 12 statewide. 

For Adrian, the decision to sue was fraught. He was already feeling like a problem no one could solve. He was just about to turn 18, when he would be able to legally change his name and seek gender-affirming health care. He would graduate in May. But that did nothing for the LGBTQ+ students younger than him. So, in September, he decided to fight not only for himself, but for the thousands of Texas teens affected by SB 12, and joined the ACLU鈥檚 lawsuit with two other plaintiffs, both of whom used pseudonyms.

Meanwhile, students around the state were reaching the same conclusion 鈥� that their only option was to fight 鈥� not only about SB 12, but about other laws and policies that impacted their classmates. 

Like Adrian, students in Bastrop ISD, in a small town east of Austin, arrived at school in August to find banished clubs, disappeared pride flags, and even gaps in the curriculum where feminist history and world religions should have been. The Mental Health Fair was cancelled and Radiant Hearts, a student-run organization that passes out hygiene products to 鈥渆rase period poverty,鈥� was not allowed to pass out pads or tampons in communal spaces anymore. Because SB 12 requires parental consent for any sort of  鈥減sychological evaluation鈥� or instruction in mental health, many districts have interpreted it to mean that teachers and counselors can’t talk to kids about anything mental health related unless a parent has signed a form granting permission. (Bastrop ISD did not respond to requests for comment at the time of publication.)

Throughout the fall, Bailey Calderon watched as her classmates struggled to adapt. Calderon is straight and Catholic, but the injustice and the general sense of discouragement among the student body made her feel like fighting back on behalf of others was 鈥渨hat Jesus would have done,鈥� she said. 

She quickly realized that the laws had students hemmed in tightly. When Calderon tried to conduct a survey on the effects of SB 12 on student well-being, she said she was told it violated the law’s prohibition on student well-being surveys administered without parental consent. She spoke at school board meetings, joined a statewide student activism organization called Students Engaged in Advancing Texas, and joined Democratic lawmaker James Talarico鈥檚 Senate campaign as a student organizer to 鈥渟how students they have a voice and it actually matters,鈥� she said.听

The members of the banned and curtailed clubs found ways to carry on. The Mental Health Club figured out how to talk around the issues prohibited by SB 12, and other student clubs became quiet, unofficial places where queer kids could connect socially, even if they couldn鈥檛 explicitly talk about the topics they might have in the disbanded Gender and Sexuality Alliance.

 鈥淭he law is a butterfly net,鈥� said 16-year-old Izzy Mock. 鈥淏ut underneath we鈥檙e still unified.鈥� 

Across the state, similar stories popped up. Bookstores and churches opened their doors to host the banned clubs off campus. Students continued to refer to each other by their chosen names and pronouns. Some spoke at school board meetings on the harms of SB 12-related policies. Wherever they went, they went together.  

鈥淣o matter how repressive state laws may be, many students are building community among their peers. They are advocating for their rights at school board meetings and remaining unapologetic and resilient,鈥� said Cameron Samuels, executive director of Students Engaged in Advancing Texas, an organizing group and one of the plaintiffs in the ACLU lawsuit.

Often what students find as they organize with their peers is the very support that politicians are actively trying to undermine. The sense of purpose and belonging they are finding among their protesting peers makes even more sense given the adolescent shift long observed by doctors, psychologists and sociologists: As kids enter their teenage years, their peers, not their parents, their feelings of belonging. 

鈥淲hen lawmakers seek to silence and erase LGBTQ+ youth, it鈥檚 the youth ourselves who are taking courageous stands to live authentically, defend our rights, and support our peers,鈥� Samuels said. But while student activism is 鈥渃athartic and fulfilling,鈥� it doesn鈥檛 negate the harm the laws and policies do, or the need for adults to act. For Adrian, his mom鈥檚 support was a critical component of his well-being.听

When the Texas Education Agency and Gov. Greg Abbott began threatening to investigate districts if they didn鈥檛 crack down hard enough on protestors, the number of protests grew. Student organizers around the state shared not only a moral clarity about mass deportations, but a frustration at the state鈥檚 increasingly heavy hand. From book bans to gun violence to SB 12, they said, it felt like students were suffering because of adults鈥� agendas. 鈥淲hat do the officials actually care about?鈥� one student organizer in an Austin suburb said. 鈥淏ecause it鈥檚 clearly not kids.鈥� 

While students around Texas were walking out and organizing, Adrian was waiting on the judge鈥檚 decision. 

The lawsuit hinged on two sets of plaintiffs: the statewide organizations claiming that SB 12 violated members鈥� free speech and freedom of association, and the three students claiming that their school district鈥檚 specific policies in response to SB 12 had harmed them. Because Adrian was the only one of the student plaintiffs to join the suit under his own name he emerged as the student spokesperson for the lawsuit, with quotes in press releases, and statements to the media.

During the hearing, a federal judge appointed by President Donald Trump chastised the Texas Education Agency, Katy ISD, Houston ISD and Plano ISD for their inability to clearly explain what the law supposedly required them to do, and who was responsible for enforcing it. In an effort to get his school district dismissed as defendants in the lawsuit, the lawyer for Katy ISD insisted that SB 12 had tied their hands, forcing them to enact the ban on chosen names and pronouns. (Katy ISD and the Texas Education Agency did not respond to requests for comment at the time of publication.)

鈥淵ou did have discretion,鈥� Judge Charles Eskridge said to Katy ISD鈥檚 lawyer. School district policies in response to SB 12 were different enough across the state to suggest some measure of choice in how the rules were applied. If they had wanted to, the judge pointed out, a district could even have said 鈥渘o鈥� to the TEA鈥檚 guidance on the vague law. A school district could have agreed with the plaintiffs that the law was overly broad and unconstitutional. But none of the defendants seemed ready to stand up and take ownership of how they had interpreted or implemented SB 12, and Eskridge eventually expressed his annoyance at their lack of accountability. 鈥淵ou just want to sit quietly and wait to be told what to do?鈥�  

By contrast, Eskridge complimented the ACLU and its student plaintiffs for their thoroughness and clear understanding of the law. Listening to the hearing in the gallery, Adrian had rested his head on his mom鈥檚 shoulder, against the blue and pink stripes of her blouse, reminiscent of the trans pride flag. Behind them, rows of young people with trendy, edgy details accenting their business attire for a day in federal court. A lace-up boot here, a spiky earring there. Little hints of the fighting spirit dressed for battle in suits and ties. 

鈥淲hen people in power are doing such bigoted things, it鈥檚 easy to feel like everyone is against you,鈥� Adrian reflected. 鈥淏ut looking at the courtroom, there were so many more people, even physically, on our side.鈥� 

When he鈥檇 joined the lawsuit, Adrian said, some of his fears were realized. The teachers who were already struggling to relate to him across the distance created by SB 12 withdrew even further. Some stopped talking to him about their frustrations with the law, some stopped talking to him much about anything beyond classwork.  

His peers, by contrast, responded positively to seeing someone stand up for students鈥� rights. 鈥淚鈥檝e had closer relationships and more support from cis people than I鈥檝e ever had in my life,鈥� Adrian said. In particular, he said, his cisgender male classmates started voicing their support. One told Adrian that he respected what a 鈥渉ard worker鈥� Adrian was, taking on the lawsuit. 鈥淚 really bro out with my bros now,鈥� Adrian said. 

It鈥檚 been almost uncanny, he said, how little explicit hate he鈥檚 dealt with, given the magnitude of the law and the district鈥檚 policy. 鈥淭hey really do hide behind these laws in a way. No one is going out of their way to say negative things.鈥� Some classmates told him that their parents or grandparents were upset about the lawsuit, but that they, the students, were rooting for him. 鈥淭he support is so much louder than anything else.鈥� 

On February 20, the court granted the , prohibiting key aspects of SB 12 from being enforced in Katy ISD and two other school districts named in the lawsuit. The injunction did not apply statewide 鈥� it did not strike down the provisions of the law itself 鈥� but the injunction instead suggested that the school districts had chosen to apply the law in a way that harmed the student plaintiffs.  

Within a day, Adrian鈥檚 world returned to some semblance of normalcy. Teachers called him by his chosen name and used he/him pronouns. He wore his gender neutral choir uniform without concern. Now 18, he could get a prescription for hormone therapy. The Pride club eventually hosted a couple of meetings before the end of the year. By the time Senior Sunset, the end-of-year companion event to Senior Sunrise, rolled around, Adrian was ready to graduate, ready to leave high school behind. But it wasn鈥檛 without fondness. It had been a long, hard-fought year, but he had never been alone.

Roughly 76,000 fewer students enrolled in Texas public schools this academic year 鈥� the first non-pandemic decline in nearly four decades 鈥� with Hispanic students accounting for the overwhelming majority of the loss, according to a report released Monday.

The policy research group Texas 2036 analyzed the state鈥檚 enrollment data and projected that about 100,000 fewer students would attend public schools by the end of the current decade. However, some projections show the number growing by nearly half a million over that time.

Hispanic students accounted for 81% of this school year鈥檚 enrollment drop, Texas 2036 found. Students learning English and those from low-income families experienced some of the sharpest declines. Over the past year, federal and state leaders increased anti-immigration rhetoric, in some cases and across communities.

Meanwhile, the rate of Texas families having children has declined in recent years. Districts have lost students to other schooling options, with more families expected to opt out of their public neighborhood campuses as the state launches later this year.

Texas educates about 5.5 million public school students, 53% of whom are Hispanic, 24% are white and 13% are Black.

鈥淲hat stands out in the data is that public school enrollment is falling even as Texas continues to grow,鈥� said Carlo Castillo, a senior research analyst at Texas 2036, in a statement. 鈥淚n many parts of the state, population gains are no longer translating into public school enrollment growth. That points to a broader structural shift policymakers and district leaders will need to plan for.鈥�

The nonprofit shared the findings just ahead of Monday鈥檚 education committee hearing for the Texas House. The focus included updates on enrollment trends and the stability of Texas鈥� school funding system.

The state funds public schools based on attendance. Some districts have cut programs and shuttered campuses recently, despite a nearly to public education funding approved last year.

As the hearing began, Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath laid out the enrollment drop to lawmakers, noting, 鈥淲e cannot tell you the precise cause of this.鈥�

In recent years, growing immigration helped public schools manage the slump in birth rates, Bob Templeton, who studies Texas鈥� education demographics, said during the Monday hearing.

Now, districts will serve higher concentrations of students with significant needs, but they will have less funding due to drops in the number of children born and slowing immigration, Templeton said. He estimated that public school enrollment could drop by roughly 500,000 in the next four to five years.

“This is not another blip or a one-off,鈥� Templeton told lawmakers. 鈥淭his is an inflection point.鈥�

Districts in urban areas, the Panhandle and along the southern border disproportionately experienced the enrollment decline, according to the Texas 2036 report. The 2.1% decline in Hispanic enrollment 鈥� or 61,781 students 鈥� represents “the single largest year-over-year reversal” among the four major racial and ethnic groups.

Mary Lynn Pruneda, the director of education and workforce policy for Texas 2036, told The Texas Tribune that her group could not determine to what extent increased immigration enforcement contributed to the enrollment loss.

Rep. Gina Hinojosa, an Austin Democrat running for governor, said during a press conference Monday, 鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 be surprised if it is contributing to it.鈥�

Esmeralda Alday said she hears directly from families who question whether they should send their children to school at a time when immigration officers have increased activity. She is the senior director of programs and impact at ImmSchools, a national nonprofit that supports immigrant students in Texas and other states.

Some parents considered pulling their kids from bilingual education programs or sending their children to virtual schools out of fear that officers will target them, Alday said.

鈥淚’ve heard it directly from the teachers, from principals, saying, 鈥楬ey, these kids just disappeared. Can you help us locate them or help us figure out what happened to them or to their parents?鈥欌�� Alday said. “So, yes. It鈥檚 fear.鈥�

This first appeared on .

CHIRENO 鈥� Every day, Courtney Bush has to figure out who can pick up her kids.

It鈥檚 not an easy decision, even after wrestling with it for years.

With no child care options or after-school programs in her rural East Texas town, Bush sometimes leaves work early. And when that isn’t an option, she calls her sister in Lufkin 鈥� which is about 34 miles away 鈥� or a friend in town.

Bush grew up in , otherwise known as Chireno, a rural community of about 1,300 at the south end of Nacogdoches County. Her children now go to public school there. Chireno is one of 263 chronic child care deserts in the state, according to , a nonprofit that advocates for greater access to child care, especially for the state鈥檚 youngest residents.

The report, released earlier this month, found East Texas is home to the most chronic child care deserts, ZIP codes that have lacked professional child care options for at least three years.

Children At Risk鈥檚 report has tracked child care deserts across the state. The lack of affordable, quality child care poses quandaries for Texas families 鈥� and the state鈥檚 economy. A U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation report estimated that the .

Kim Kofron, the executive director of early childhood education for Children at Risk and one of the researchers who analyzed the child care desert map, believes two things cause East Texas鈥� predicament: it鈥檚 mostly rural, so getting operations up and running, and keeping them so, is difficult; and while there is a population of younger families living in rural East Texas, there aren鈥檛 always enough children to keep a center open.

Child care, which often teaches children basic life skills as well as provides foundational knowledge in literacy, is to prepare children for kindergarten and the rest of their education. And more parents, moms especially, because they don鈥檛 have adequate resources. This is leading to a growing number of children in families who rely on state support.

Community members say there hasn鈥檛 been professional child care for younger children for more than a decade. Families often turn to friends and family to watch their children 鈥� a job that often goes unpaid and unregulated.

Jacqueline Woodson, a grandmother in Chireno, has become her family鈥檚 go-to child care provider.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been generational, us having families take care of the kids because there was nothing in the area for child care,鈥� Woodson said. 鈥淧eople have to go all the way to Nacogdoches (city) to put their kids in child care.鈥�

Improving access to child care is difficult. State lawmakers have tried to help parents pay for it, but that鈥檚 only one part of the equation. Kofron said the state needs to truly look at how the system operates and find ways to smooth speed bumps for providers and to simplify the process for parents.

Sherry Durham, the senior director of child care for Workforce Solutions Deep East Texas, doesn鈥檛 want to see regulations eased, because child care businesses deal directly with some of the most vulnerable Texans. But she does believe more can be done to tell providers about grant programs and mentorships that will help those people who want to open a child care center.

Kofron believes the state is on the right track to begin addressing some of these concerns. Lawmakers in 2025 called for to study the state鈥檚 child care landscape and come to the next legislative session in 2027 with recommendations for a path forward. Kofron hopes the new map will provide that task force with a foundation for those recommendations.

Child care deserts expanding

Using data from the Texas Workforce Commission, Children At Risk has published a map of child care deserts every other year since 2017.

A child care desert, generally, is a geographic region where families lack access to regulated child care centers. can be large-scale, serving dozens of children in classroom settings, or they can be home-based operations that serve only a handful of children at a time.

Children At Risk has four classifications for child care deserts.

The first is simply areas where the number of children who need child care is three times higher than the capacity of local providers. There are 413 of these across the state.

The second is a subsidy desert, where the number of children who need a scholarship, which is state-funded, is three times higher than the available scholarships. There are 884 of these.

The third is a Texas Rising Star desert, where the child care centers are not certified with the Rising Star program. Rising Star is a state program that enforces expectations for the quality of child care families receive. There are 938 of these.

And the fourth is a new classification this year: chronic deserts. These are areas where the need for child care has been three times higher than the available options for three years in a row or more. There are 263 of these.

There are four regions in the state struggling the most with chronic child care deserts: East, Deep East, Northeast Texas and the Brazos Valley. Combined, these regions stretch from the Louisiana border to College Station.

In the Deep East Texas workforce development region that includes Angelina, Nacogdoches and Polk counties, 52 of the 82 ZIP codes are deserts. Durham wants to eradicate those deserts, and she believes the way to do that is through improving communication.

Ideally, she would have the time to establish better connections with rural community nonprofits and churches so they can spread the word about what resources the state currently has to offer. However, she鈥檚 new to the job and came at a time when workforce solutions were undergoing some changes in leadership and mindset. But she believes that improved communication is on the horizon.

鈥淭exas Rising Star and the Texas Workforce Development Group can offer support in the beginning to establish child care,鈥� Durham said. 鈥淲hether it’s a larger center or a smaller home center with maybe five or six children, the same support is available to both.鈥�

Parents may leave labor force

A lack of options in chronic deserts puts parents of young children in a precarious situation. Parents can either find a friend or a family member to watch their kids, or one parent can stay home.

The first option only works if there is someone around who can take on an extra child or two, and it鈥檚 not guaranteed. The second option is the path many families take, but it comes at a cost.

For Bush, whose children are now 6 and 11, a lack of child care options in Chireno over the years led her to job hop in search of a flexible schedule. At times, she could rely on friends or family members, often when they had chosen to stay at home to care for their own children, but she always felt guilty for asking so much of them.

She even left the workforce for six months because she didn鈥檛 have any better options. The small family relied on a single income, which just wasn鈥檛 sustainable.

鈥淚 feel like everybody has to work nowadays in order to make it,鈥� Bush said.

More Texas children are growing up in low-income households. And this is putting a strain on Texas鈥� social safety net. There were 106 new subsidy deserts in 2025 that weren’t there in 2024, according to Children At Risk, which means the need for scholarships outpaced the available funding threefold.

Scholarships, also called subsidies, pay for part of the child care tuition for children who qualify. The child must be under 13, have working parents or parents in school whose income is below a certain threshold that is dependent on the number of children in the household. For example, the monthly income for a family with two children in must not exceed $5,216.

Income levels aren鈥檛 the only rule that governs who gets a scholarship. The providers who accept scholarships for kids must follow several protocols that govern a variety of topics, including pick-up and drop-off rules.

Lawmakers in 2025 designated to child care subsidies. The entire designation was eaten up by inflation costs and failed to provide any substantial improvement to the child care system.

Without adequate resources for employees, Durham worries companies won鈥檛 choose to move to Deep East Texas. And she worries that young East Texans won鈥檛 be prepared for kindergarten.

Child care can help prepare kids for school

Young children typically have five years before they go to a traditional school and those years are exceedingly formative.

鈥淪o if they live in a chronic desert for three or more years, that鈥檚 a majority of the child鈥檚 life in a desert,鈥� Kofron said. 鈥淭hat is not only hampering mom and dad from going to work, it鈥檚 also hampering that child鈥檚 ability to get ready for kindergarten.鈥�

Kindergarten readiness is a of a child鈥檚 success down the road. By the time a 5-year-old starts kindergarten, they should be able to speak clearly, recite their alphabet and correctly hold tools, such as pencils or scissors. They should also have some basic ability to regulate their own behavior.

While parents can ensure their children have these foundational skills, studies have shown that high-quality child care can give children a big step up. This is part of the goal of program 鈥� to establish a standard of education for children aged 0 to 5 that prepares them for that first day of school.

However, a growing number of counties lack child care facilities that are state-certified. There were 88 more rising star deserts in 2025 than there were in 2024, for a total of 938.

Improvements in South Texas

Despite the dire concerns registered by Children At Risk, there were some bright moments of success in Texas鈥� child care landscape.

Cameron, the Concho Valley and the Lower Rio Grande Valley saw the highest rate of providers being added to the Texas Rising Star roster. And 60 new providers were approved to accept child care scholarships in the last year, Children At Risk found, though the organization would like to see that number grow exponentially.

Plus, more home-based child care providers have opened across the state in the last year, which means there are more options for families seeking child care. There still aren鈥檛 as many providers as there were before 2020, but it is an improvement.

In Deep East Texas, Durham said she wants to hear from those at-home centers that aren鈥檛 registered yet, like Woodson, who takes care of her family鈥檚 youngest members. Durham wants to connect them with more state resources and which might provide a clearer picture of what options are available in rural communities.

Registering home-based centers could also give the state a better understanding of the region鈥檚 needs and make more informed recommendations for the future.

Durham said she鈥檚 optimistic for the future. She sees the conversation around child care growing and believes there is a legitimate interest in finding solutions.

Kofron is excited to see what the task force assigned to investigate the state鈥檚 child care subsidy program learns. She hopes that the task force looks at her organization鈥檚 data to inform their recommendations.

She wants them to deeply consider how the state governs early childhood education and what can be streamlined. Finding ways to simplify the process for child care providers and the families they serve could do a lot to improve the state鈥檚 system.

鈥淎nd then it comes down to the funding,鈥� Kofron said. 鈥淲e have to make sure that we have enough funding in the system to give families the support they need so they can get back to work and support their families.鈥�

This first appeared on .

Texas can enforce a state law requiring public schools to display posters of the Ten Commandments in classrooms, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.

A 9-8 majority of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in Texas officials鈥� favor, concluding that the law does not establish an official state religion.

“It does not tell churches or synagogues or mosques what to believe or how to worship or whom to employ as priests, rabbis, or imams,” according to . “It punishes no one who rejects the Ten Commandments, no matter the reason.”

The court heard arguments in January after 16 families sued over the law, alleging that it amounted to state leaders promoting their interpretation of Christianity over other faiths.

All 17 active judges on the court listened to the case 鈥� 鈥� alongside a similar challenge in Louisiana, the first state to pass a Ten Commandments requirement for its public schools. The court cleared the way in February for Louisiana to fully implement its law.

After Tuesday鈥檚 decision, the civil rights organizations representing the families expressed disappointment.

“The court鈥檚 ruling goes against fundamental First Amendment principles and binding U.S. Supreme Court authority,” the groups said in a statement. “The First Amendment safeguards the separation of church and state, and the freedom of families to choose how, when and if to provide their children with religious instruction. This decision tramples those rights.鈥�

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton celebrated the decision, calling it a major victory for Texas and its 鈥渕oral values.鈥�

鈥淢y office was proud to defend SB 10 and successfully ensure that the Ten Commandments will be displayed in classrooms across Texas,” Paxton said. “The Ten Commandments have had a profound impact on our nation, and it鈥檚 important that students learn from them every single day.鈥�

The case is playing a central role in the national debate over whether the laws violate the First Amendment鈥檚 Establishment Clause, which prohibits governments from endorsing or promoting a particular religion. The civil rights organizations said they plan to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse the decision.

Here鈥檚 what we know.

Background: The Texas Legislature passed in 2025, with Gov. signing it into law that June. It requires public schools to display donated posters of the Ten Commandments, sized at least 16 by 20 inches, in a visible space on classroom walls.

The families 鈥� represented by a coalition of civil rights organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas 鈥� sued 11 school districts to block what their lawyers called 鈥渃atastrophically unconstitutional鈥� legislation.

U.S. District Judge Fred Biery agreed, blocking the law from taking effect in the districts named in the lawsuit: Alamo Heights, North East, Lackland, Northside, Austin, Lake Travis, Dripping Springs, Houston, Fort Bend, Cypress-Fairbanks and Plano.

Biery concluded the law improperly favors Christianity over other faiths and said it would likely interfere with families鈥� 鈥渆xercise of their sincere religious or nonreligious beliefs in substantial ways.鈥�

asked the 5th Circuit Court to overturn Biery鈥檚 ruling and allow all 17 active judges on the court to hear the Texas and Louisiana cases together.

A federal judge Louisiana鈥檚 Ten Commandments law from taking effect in 2024, a decision last year by a panel of three judges on the 5th Circuit Court. Twelve of the appeals court鈥檚 were appointed by Republican presidents. The court is considered one of the most conservative in the nation.

The arguments for the case did not include two other challenging the Ten Commandments law.

One lawsuit resulted in a federal judge blocking 14 more school districts from complying with the law. The other asks a federal judge to block all Texas schools from following the law and is pending.

Why the families sued: They argued that the law subjects children to a state-imposed Protestant version of the Ten Commandments that many religious and nonreligious Texans do not recognize.

The families believe the law seeks to pressure students into observing and adopting Texas officials鈥� preferred religious principles.

They say the law will inflict harm by alienating children of those who do not follow the state鈥檚 preferred religion and that parents鈥� authority to direct their children鈥檚 religious education is undermined.

鈥淧osting the Ten Commandments in public schools is un-American and un-Baptist,鈥� Griff Martin, a pastor, parent and plaintiff in the lawsuit, said in a statement last year. 鈥淪.B. 10 undermines the separation of church and state as a bedrock principle of my family鈥檚 Baptist heritage. Baptists have long held that the government has no role in religion 鈥� so that our faith may remain free and authentic.鈥�

The families鈥� lawyers argue that because children are legally required to attend school, they have virtually no way of avoiding Texas鈥� required version of the Ten Commandments.

The U.S. Supreme Court found public school displays of the Ten Commandments unconstitutional in 1980. Civil rights attorneys argue that only the Supreme Court can overturn its previous rulings.

What the state argues: Paxton and attorneys from his office say the Ten Commandments played a significant role in the nation鈥檚 history and heritage. State leaders have said previous rulings from federal courts and the U.S. Supreme Court did not examine that historical significance.

State lawyers also note that the Supreme Court recently , established by a previous ruling, that determined when a government had unconstitutionally endorsed or established a religion.

鈥淭here is no legal reason to stop Texas from honoring a core ethical foundation of our law, especially not a bogus claim about the 鈥榮eparation of church and state,鈥� which is a phrase found nowhere in the Constitution,鈥� Paxton said last year.

Lawyers with the attorney general鈥檚 office see the Ten Commandments requirement as requiring only a 鈥減assive display on the wall鈥� that does not rise to the level of coercion because students are free to ignore the posters. The law might cross the line if it sought to incorporate the Ten Commandments into lessons or assignments, they argued.

The posters must go up in Texas classrooms only if donated by someone. The law does not specify what would happen if school leaders choose not to comply. The state views that as evidence no threat or harm is posed to families. However, Paxton if schools do not comply and sued three districts for alleged noncompliance.

What happened during oral arguments: Some judges questioned state officials from Texas and Louisiana about their decisions to use a Protestant version of the Ten Commandments and how that would affect families who do not follow those religious principles.

Lawyers for the states argued that the laws do not ask children to subscribe to a particular belief and urged the judges to consider legislators鈥� intent to teach students about important documents in U.S. history.

The judges questioned how children would know the posters have anything to do with American history. They also asked for historical evidence showing the use of the Ten Commandments in public schools.

Lawyers for the states pointed to early textbooks that referenced the Ten Commandments but acknowledged those materials were largely used in religious settings prior to the establishment of public schools in the 1800s.

Public schools used the materials through the early 20th century. However, a prominent historian who testified in the case that the Ten Commandments were not significant aspects of the texts and that it is unclear how much teachers relied on those specific lessons.

鈥淎 legislature in Louisiana, a legislature in Texas, is absolutely well within its right to say: We want to actually teach our students about founding documents,鈥� said Ben Agui帽aga, the attorney representing Louisiana.

Judges asked the lawyers representing the families why they consider the Ten Commandments posters problematic when students recite the Pledge of Allegiance and learn about the Declaration of Independence and Martin Luther King Jr.鈥檚 Letter from a Birmingham Jail 鈥� all of which refer to God.

King鈥檚 letter and the Declaration of Independence may reference religion, the lawyers replied, but they鈥檙e about more than religion.

Some judges noted during arguments that the Supreme Court鈥檚 1980 ruling heavily relied on a test that courts no longer use. The families鈥� lawyers countered that removing the test did not overturn Supreme Court precedent preventing the Ten Commandments from going up in public classrooms.

If students do not follow the religious principles in the state鈥檚 mandated version of the Ten Commandments, judges asked, can鈥檛 they ignore the posters?

鈥淭hey can’t just look away, your honor,鈥� said attorney Jon Youngwood, representing the families. 鈥淣ot for 13 years. Not in every class. Not every minute of every day.鈥�

What the court ruled: A court majority concluded that the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1980 ruling in is no longer valid. That case found a Kentucky law requiring the posting of the Ten Commandments unconstitutional.

The Supreme Court recently abandoned the test established in Stone that determined whether states had illegally endorsed or promoted a religion, the 5th U.S. Circuit judges noted. That means “there is nothing left of Stone,” they noted in the ruling.

They concluded that Texas’ Ten Commandments law does not establish an official state religion. Among reasons, they noted that it 鈥渓evies no taxes to support any clergy. It does not co-opt churches to perform civic functions.”

The judges ruled that the law is not coercive because it does not require students to learn the Ten Commandments or give teachers authority to undermine students’ religious beliefs.

“Yes, Plaintiffs have sincere religious disagreements with its content,” the opinion reads. “But that does not transform the poster into a summons to prayer.”

An opinion written by judges who opposed the decision argued in response that it is insignificant that Texas鈥� law does not require schools to teach the Ten Commandments.

The law poses a threat to children鈥檚 religious beliefs and undermines what parents may want their kids to learn about religion, they wrote in dissenting statements.

The opposing judges agreed with the argument of families who sued that the Supreme Court has not overturned its Stone v. Graham ruling. Lower courts are bound by Stone even if the test established in it is no longer in use, they added. Taking into account the historical-based approach courts must now use, the dissenting judges said Texas鈥� law still violates the Constitution.

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That鈥檚 why she鈥檚 grateful that her 11th grader Kai can explore a career field at her high school in the Tomball Independent School District, outside Houston. Kai is in the legal studies program, which meets daily at the Tomball Innovation Center, a 70-acre facility that houses programs like aviation maintenance, cybersecurity and app design.

鈥淔or her to just get her feet wet and see if it’s something that she might want to do for the rest of her life is awesome,鈥� Davis said. 鈥淵ou don’t want to go into something in college and then all of a sudden not understand what it is you’re getting into.鈥�

Programs like Tomball鈥檚 are helping to keep some families in public schools at a time of rapidly expanding private school options, according to from Tyton Partners, a consulting firm that focuses on the education sector. Enrollment in the district has climbed from 10,000 to nearly 24,000 students over the past decade, even as many others in the Houston metro area have . The report attributes such increases to career-connected high schools that not only reflect student interests, but that are popular with both kids and parents. 

鈥淓veryone’s looking to create fun, interesting new programs. In fact, there are probably too many of them,鈥� said Adam Newman, Tyton founder and managing partner. Instead, districts should focus on making sure a 鈥渃ritical mass鈥� of students participate in high school redesign initiatives for those programs to 鈥渞emain compelling for parents鈥� and attract growth, he said.

A survey of 250 high school administrators showed that more than half of districts and charters with high participation in redesigned programs saw enrollment growth between 2022 and 2025. Those with minimal participation continued to see enrollment decline.

But that hasn鈥檛 been the problem in Tomball. The demand to enroll in classes at the facility, a for an oilfield services company, is so great, the district holds a lottery to admit students. With an actual courtroom on site, Kai, who attended a classical Christian school for K-5, has been able to observe traffic court. She鈥檚 learning how to prepare oral arguments and properly cite case law. 

鈥淭hey teach you about how to think like a lawyer,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 feel like I’ll definitely have a leg up once I get to college.鈥�

Other students can earn a pilot鈥檚 license when they graduate or leave with an industry certification in fields like animal science or graphic design. Those in the , an early college model, will complete an associates degree along with a high school diploma. 

With HCA Healthcare nearby and building a branch of its pharmaceutical business in Houston, Tiffani Wooten, assistant director of the Tomball Economic Development Corp., said P-TECH helps 鈥渇ast track鈥� kids into in-demand careers. 

Health care is a 鈥渉uge growing industry that we鈥檙e going to have to continue to filter kids in,鈥� she said. She describes her role as a 鈥渃onnector鈥� who works with the district to 鈥渂ring the industry to the table.鈥�

Christian Lehr, managing director at Tyton, said the district views 鈥渃areer-connected pathways as a core enrollment and value proposition strategy,鈥� instead of as an add-on.

鈥楨nrollment pressure鈥�

The report is a departure for Tyton, which has focused most of its analyses in recent years on efforts to disrupt the public education system. In 2022, it released survey data showing a one-year, 9% drop in families saying their children were enrolled in a traditional district school. Charters, private schools and homeschooling saw increases over that same time period.

In a deeper look at school choice, Tyton researchers reported in 2024 that improving their children鈥檚 mental health was the main reason why parents considered leaving the traditional system for alternatives like online programs and private schools.

This year, the team 鈥渢urned the lens back to the public system because many of them are grappling with enrollment pressure,鈥� Lehr said. With AI changing the workplace, they鈥檙e also thinking about the 鈥渟hift from a college-for-all, No Child Left Behind mentality.鈥� 

There are plenty of reasons to rethink education for teens, said Celina Pierrottet, who leads a high school transformation project with the National Association of State Boards of Education. 

In a from Gallup and the Walton Family Foundation, less than half of students said their schoolwork was challenging in a positive way or matched what they do best. Forty-six percent of 12- to 27-year-olds, including those in K-12, said they weren鈥檛 having any engaging experiences at school. Chronic absenteeism also remains higher than it was before the pandemic.

鈥淭here are a lot of warning signs flashing that high schools need to change,鈥� Pierrottet said. 

鈥楢 long journey鈥�

The Tyton project, funded by the Walton Family Foundation, also includes brief case studies of districts and charter networks to identify some common redesign elements, like getting input from students on what they want and relying on outside groups, including employers and nonprofits, to execute the programs. 

The pattern revealed itself in Arizona, where over 100,000 students participate in the state鈥檚 universal private school choice program. Enrollment in the , outside Tucson, has increased 4.3% since 2022. While new housing development in the area has contributed to growth, enrollment increases have outpaced that of the high school-aged population. 

The Tyton report also features the Anaheim Union High School District in California, which used to remake secondary schools and re-engage students. District leaders took the focus off testing and designed courses like biotech chemistry that link academic content with job skills.  

One school launched a community gardening project that鈥檚 used for instruction across the curriculum. But getting the community to notice can be 鈥渁 long journey,鈥� Lehr said. The Anaheim district has been at its redesign work for a decade. 

In a state where public school enrollment is expected to through the end of the decade, the Anaheim district has seen a slight decline since 2022.

鈥淭he key question is whether execution holds,鈥� Lehr said. 鈥淚f it does, we鈥檇 expect stabilization and ultimately growth over the next five years.鈥�

Disclosure: Walton Family Foundation provides financial support to 社区黑料.

The Texas State Board of Education gave preliminary approval Friday to a mandatory list of books that all public schools will teach starting in 2030, paring down an earlier version students and educators had criticized for being too long, lacking diversity and emphasizing Christianity.

The majority-Republican board voted 9-5 to approve the reading list, which the group will have a chance to revise ahead of final approval set for June. All five Democrats on the board voted against the list.

The board had on the list in January to allow for more time to review the proposal.

A required the Texas Education Agency to design the list of reading materials for public K-12 students. The agency initially recommended roughly 300 books for consideration, far exceeding the requirement of at least one literary work in each grade.

The original list included childhood favorites across a range of genres 鈥� from Dr. Seuss鈥� The Cat in the Hat to S.E. Hinton鈥檚 The Outsiders 鈥� while also incorporating biblical material such as The Parable of the Prodigal Son and The Road to Damascus. In addition to the lack of religious diversity, critics raised concerns about the underrepresentation of women as well as Hispanic and Black authors.

The revised list, proposed by Republican member Keven Ellis of Lufkin, cut about 100 readings 鈥� including Mary Shelley鈥檚 Frankenstein and Frederick Douglass鈥� What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July? 鈥� though it still includes Bible texts.

鈥淭here are other states, many other states, who have recommended reading lists,鈥� Ellis said. 鈥淭o my knowledge, there is not one that will have a required reading list as robust as this, that will be common for every student across the state.鈥�

The Texas Education Agency created the original proposal after reviewing books used by other states and organizations. The agency has also said it factored in survey responses from roughly 5,700 teachers, noting that the list contained fewer books than what educators said they currently use.

But during hours of public testimony this week, educators said they considered the survey insufficient because teachers did not review or revise the reading list before the education agency submitted it to the State Board of Education.

They pointed to a different survey of more than 2,600 educators conducted by the Texas Council of Teachers of English Language Arts. The survey concluded that in all but one grade, it would be 鈥渕athematically impossible鈥� to read and teach the full list during the typical 36 instructional weeks in a school year.

鈥淚 believe that an acceptable list would be one that’s created with teacher expertise, leaning on the strengths of everyone involved in this work,鈥� said Markesha Tisby, president of Texas Council of Teachers of English Language Arts. 鈥淭here’s still time. There’s no prize for making this decision quickly. We have time to build something great for our Texas students, and they deserve it.鈥�

The public has not yet weighed in on the revised list the board preliminarily approved Friday.

Member Julie Pickren, R-Pearland, said she was shocked to see writings from Douglass and Booker T. Washington removed. Republican Brandon Hall of Aledo said he views the list as a 鈥渟tarting place.鈥� Members will have opportunities to suggest changes and offer feedback before the final vote in June.

Supporters of the list have said they believe the biblical material will help students better grasp the influence of Christianity in U.S. history. Meanwhile, at least one critic called the original list and its biblical material 鈥渁 lawsuit waiting to happen,鈥� while many stressed the importance of students needing to see themselves reflected in the books they read.

鈥淎s a recent graduate of the Texas public school system, I care deeply about the curriculum my friends and family will be taught,鈥� said Sumya Paruchuri, a freshman at the University of North Texas.

鈥淭he best taught English classes that I had were when the teachers were passionate about the text they were teaching, whether they were fans of the work or understood the educational opportunities they presented for students,鈥� Paruchuri added. 鈥淭he required reading list鈥檚 attempt to standardize readings is unhelpful and counterproductive to the real needs of students and educators.鈥�

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State officials, activists and educators have largely shaped public dialogue about Texas鈥� social studies overhaul, but young people added their voices to the conversation Tuesday, calling for instruction that includes diverse perspectives and challenges them to think critically.

The majority-Republican education board began last year to redesign Texas鈥� social studies standards, which outline what students need to learn by the time they graduate. The board plans to finalize the standards this summer, with classroom implementation expected in 2030.

Up to this point, a majority of the board has to center Texas and U.S. history in social studies while deemphasizing world cultures, world history and geography. A has helped guide the process, almost all of whom have no K-12 classroom experience in Texas and several of whom have ties to . Critics say the panel has assumed full control of Texas鈥� social studies rewrite, undermining teacher expertise. of the social studies changes, critics argue, prioritize memorization over critical thinking and simplification over accuracy.

The students who testified before the State Board of Education on Tuesday, the first of four days of meetings in Austin, expressed disappointment in the overhaul 鈥� saying it focuses too heavily on Western civilization at the expense of other cultures, lacks historical perspective of people of color, and prioritizes Christianity over other major world religions.

They want to learn the good, bad and ugly aspects of history. They want to understand why things happened and how they connect to other events. They want the board to give parents and teachers more opportunities for input. They want the board to slow down and take more time to develop the standards. They want to eliminate political agendas. They want to feel seen.

鈥淲e know when something is being left out,鈥� said Caiden Davis, a high school junior from Humble. 鈥淲hat we need from our schools isn鈥檛 a watered-down version of history. We need the truth even when it’s uncomfortable, even when it challenges us.鈥�

Instead of omitting perspectives, said Houston student Zayra Espinoza, Texas should 鈥渇ocus on supporting teachers, investing in students and ensuring classrooms remain spaces for learning, not political control.鈥�

And students need to see their perspectives reflected in social studies, because 鈥渆veryone deserves to be represented,鈥� said sixth-grader Jomeyra Sharif.

鈥淪chools should do more to promote equality, respect different cultures, and making all students feel included,鈥� Sharif said, 鈥渟o they can be proud to be American.鈥�

The board will finalize the standards in June. Meetings have only grown more contentious as the deadline moves closer.

Democrats have sought honest depictions of slavery and the historical contributions of people of color. Republicans want to prioritize American exceptionalism and Christianity, criticizing Muslim Texans who testify in favor of Islam being depicted in lessons accurately and fairly. Teachers feel excluded, calling the process rushed and early proposals inadequate. Many feel political actors have assumed control of a process that should instead focus on educating students.

Students who spoke Tuesday, during a meeting that stretched beyond 12 hours, said they want social studies instruction to include more women, Hispanic and Black perspectives. They want to learn about African kingdoms. They want to know more about the Middle East.

When students are not challenged to do more than just identify and describe historical events, 鈥渢hat means less analyzing, less questioning, and less discussion,鈥� said Gannon Davis Keener, a seventh-grader in Humble.

鈥淚 want to learn history in a way that challenges me to think, not just remember,鈥� Keener said. 鈥淚 respectfully ask that you slow down and allow teachers and parents a greater role in revising these standards to keep the level of thinking high so students can truly learn, understand and enjoy history.鈥�

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Editor’s note: This post contains an image that includes a racial effigy.

Jennifer Lee and Kyev Tatum agree that Texas鈥� Black students do not receive the same academic support as their peers, that schools punish them unfairly and that recent state laws silence Black history and perspectives in the classroom.

But the two Black Texans sharply diverge on whether the state’s will make education in Texas better or worse for students who look like them.

Lee feels confident that vouchers, which allow families to use public funds for private school and home-schooling costs, will allow the state to drain money from a public school student population while benefiting and . That鈥檚 what she sees in other states with vouchers, often referred to as 鈥渟chool choice.鈥�

鈥淚t’s impossible to research a school choice program and not come away understanding that it has been detrimental almost everywhere it’s touched,鈥� Lee said.

Tatum, a Fort Worth pastor, believes vouchers will provide Black families who are frustrated by the shortcomings of public education the funding needed to build private schooling options.

鈥淭here’s not one person in the whole entire country who can look me in the eye and tell me that public schools have done right by Black kids,鈥� Tatum said.

Texas families faced a to apply for vouchers, which will provide home-schoolers up to $2,000 per year, private school students $10,500 and children with disabilities up to $30,000. State leaders are now deciding which students will receive funding for the 2026-27 school year, pending their acceptance to a school. Of almost , 45% are white, 23% are Hispanic and 12% are Black.

As Texas prepares for its inaugural school year offering vouchers, Lee and Tatum鈥檚 opposing viewpoints on what it will mean for Black students differ as much as their perspectives on school vouchers鈥� discriminatory history in Texas. In 1957, Texas lawmakers proposed a voucher plan as part of a slate of bills introduced to avoid compliance with the landmark Supreme Court decision making it illegal for schools to separate children based on race.

Since that time, the Legislature has grown more racially and ethnically diverse, though it is still .

And Hispanic students now make up the majority of public school students, surpassing white students in enrollment. Yet no other racial or ethnic group lags further behind their school peers than Black children, who make up 13% of Texas students but and .

When today鈥檚 Republicans pitched school vouchers, they promoted them as a state-funded option for families to escape the boundaries of their local school districts. The movement achieved its crowning moment after Gov. Greg Abbott and his campaigned against House Republicans who opposed vouchers, helping elect new lawmakers who voted for the program.

鈥淕one are the days that families are limited to only the school assigned by government,鈥� Abbott said moments before signing the voucher legislation. 鈥淭he day has arrived that empowers parents to choose the school that鈥檚 best for their child.鈥�

Vouchers became Texas law in an era when Republicans say diversity efforts have shifted schools鈥� focus from core academics toward political activism. They believe such efforts have effectively given people of color preferential treatment.

In recent years, Texas lawmakers have also required public schools to teach about in ways that ensure white students do not feel guilt. Districts can for as long as considered necessary, a form of punishment against Black students. And campus leaders can when creating policies or making hiring decisions, despite evidence that Black educators for students.

鈥淒EI agendas divide us rather than unite us and have no place in the state of Texas,鈥� Abbott said in an banning diversity, equity and inclusion policies in state agencies. 鈥淭hese radical policies deviate from constitutional principles and deny diverse thought. Every Texan is equal under the law, including the state and federal Constitutions, both of which prohibit government discrimination based on race.鈥�

Tatum is fed up. His support for vouchers is about rescuing as many Black kids as possible from public schools.

鈥淲hat I’m saying is: Those who want to stay in the house and burn, stay in the house,鈥� Tatum said. 鈥淏ut for those of us who don’t want to burn, open the door, allow me to leave, and give me my money so that I can give it to a house that’s not burning, but thriving.鈥�

Lee worries vouchers will leave fewer resources for kids who remain in public schools. She also questions why Texas officials want anything to do with an initiative once proposed to derail Black children from equal opportunity.

鈥淵ou might believe in parent choice and all of that,鈥� Lee said. 鈥淏ut when you start talking about you, as a person, sitting in church on Sunday, are you really OK with saying, 鈥榃ell, yeah, I do want segregation again鈥�?鈥�

鈥淭he best education is an investment鈥�

Texas public schools receive funding based on student attendance, meaning they will lose money for every child who leaves to participate in the voucher program. In other states offering vouchers, a mass exodus of children leaving public schools for private options has not materialized. Still, critics worry the Texas program will grow in size and cost. And if future cuts are needed, they worry political leaders will trim public school budgets first.

Lee, a former public school teacher and a 2024 Democratic candidate for the Texas House, acknowledges public education has a long way to go in helping Black students grow and thrive in the classroom.

Majority-Black schools are more than as majority-white schools to receive a D or F in Texas鈥� academic ratings. On state tests, Black students of all racial and ethnic groups. Aside from , Black students all other Texans on national exams, too. They graduate at the and drop out at .

But Lee contends that such inequities do not emerge by accident. It starts, she said, with inadequate resources.

鈥淥ur country has demonstrated that time and time again, we believe that the best education is an investment,鈥� Lee said. 鈥淧rivate schools cost ridiculous amounts of money because parents believe that education is an investment.鈥�

In 2023, Abbott said he would not sign sweeping education funding legislation if it excluded a voucher program. When , public schools lost out on billions that could have benefited students. The 2025 legislative session marked the that Texas lawmakers increased across-the-board money for public education.

Hundreds of districts approved budget deficits over that time. They increased class sizes, cut staffing and closed schools to save money. Last year鈥檚 nearly boost still fell billions short of catching them up with inflation. Meanwhile, Texas in average teacher salary and per-student spending, respectively, according to the National Education Association.

Public education advocates acknowledge that funding is not the only reason for 鈥� or answer to 鈥� Texas’ academic shortcomings, especially for Black students who have suffered through resistance to integration, the elimination of Black educators and unequal access to quality facilities and learning materials. And Lee thinks state laws clamping down on initiatives that promote diversity exacerbate negative academic outcomes.

But the advocates see funding as the foundation.

鈥淭eachers are being asked to do so much with so little and then being mocked because they couldn’t quite get there,鈥� Lee said.

Private schools typically face no requirements to accept students who live in their community or make learning arrangements for children with disabilities.

On the contrary, traditional public schools generally do not charge tuition or set admission requirements. They welcome different faiths and religions. They teach students who speak different languages. They accommodate students with disabilities. They offer free lunch, health care and laundry.

In other words, public schools are a public good worth preserving, said Michael McFarland, superintendent of the Crowley Independent School District, a majority-Black school system in North Texas.

“You’re still going to have the masses of children in the public institution,鈥� McFarland said. 鈥淚f the public institution is no longer serving the public good, then it creates a definite challenge for our country, a challenge for our city and our state.鈥�

When states expand voucher access to include virtually any school-age child like Texas has, tend to benefit most. Lee fears the children of white and wealthy Texans will graduate from well-funded private schools while public school students will graduate from scraps.

鈥淲hat’s going to happen is that we’re going to see a lot of Black and brown children who have schools that are broken down, very few resources, and basically feeding that pre-K to prison pipeline,鈥� Lee said.

She refuses to allow her 9-year-old son, Brock, to grow up in a bubble where he interacts only with children of the same belief system and social class. If Brock is expected to thrive in the real world, Lee said, she wants him educated in a setting that closely resembles that world. Public schools work, she insists, because they teach children 鈥渉ow to be a human.鈥�

鈥淲hen we start siloing ourselves and saying, 鈥業 only want to be around white, straight Christians,鈥欌�� Lee said, 鈥渢hen suddenly everyone else who doesn’t fit into that category, they’re not people, they’re problems, they’re things, they’re other.鈥�

鈥淭hey don鈥檛 love us back鈥� 

Before Brown v. Board of Education, Black schools suffered from inadequate funding, outdated textbooks and crumbling buildings. Even so, highly credentialed led those institutions, and they nurtured Black children while holding them to high expectations. Students those heightened standards.

But in newly integrated schools after the Supreme Court鈥檚 1954 ruling in Brown, many white leaders deemed Black teachers and administrators unfit, demoting them, firing them or forcing their resignation. So while Black and white students began attending the same schools, Black educators became rare.

鈥淵ou had a system where Blacks wanted kids to do well,鈥� said Tatum, who argues that Texas鈥� current teachers and administrators resent Black students鈥� culture and achievements.

鈥淵ou don’t protect what you do not respect,鈥� Tatum added. 鈥淪ince Brown, we鈥檝e tried to love them, but they don鈥檛 love us back.鈥�

A civil rights activist who founded and previously ran a charter school, Tatum is the one Black families call when public schools have wronged their children. One teacher multiple times during a class presentation, another into a child鈥檚 mouth. Black trauma pushed Tatum to a stark conclusion: Public schools have a culture problem.

The Texas Legislature could grant school districts access to all the money in the world, Tatum insists, but additional funding will not change school leaders who for sporting locs or who for celebrating hip-hop. In the Fort Worth Independent School District, a majority Hispanic and Black district in Tatum鈥檚 hometown, only one-third of students are testing on grade level.

鈥淟et’s be real,鈥� Tatum said. 鈥淭hese kids have been traumatized in these inner-city communities, in schools.鈥�

In Tatum鈥檚 vision, Black churches will open small schools. Black teachers will lead instruction. Students will celebrate Juneteenth and learn to read. Administrators, by fostering a nurturing learning institution, will kill the school-to-prison pipeline.

At that point, voucher advocates say, Black communities will have used the environment of 鈥渆ducation freedom鈥� to their advantage, reclaiming their students and prioritizing their values.

鈥淎nd that’s what we should do 鈥� first of all, because Black people have never been served well by the public education system,鈥� said Denisha Allen, executive director of Black Minds Matter, a national organization advocating to improve academic outcomes for Black children.

Noliwe Rooks, an Africana studies professor at Brown University, wrote a book detailing how resistance to integration decimated Black school systems and subjected many Black students to discrimination and violence from their white peers.

Rooks agrees that many Black students today still lack the support they enjoyed in schools before the Brown decision.

However, she also noted that building Black schools without deep knowledge of how to manage finances, how to develop curricula and teach, and how to assist students with varying disabilities will create similar challenges that plague other schools. Black communities possessed that knowledge during segregation, Rooks said, which is why 鈥渓osing the infrastructure for Black education matters.鈥�

鈥淛ust having some Black people say, 鈥業’m going to start a school for Black kids,鈥� has not worked,鈥� Rooks said. Vouchers, she added, are also not the fix.

鈥淚t further exacerbates what’s broken,鈥� Rooks said. 鈥淭he problem is the education system 鈥� the idea of it as a public good, as something that’s supposed to be shared, that’s a national priority 鈥� that’s what’s broken.鈥�

But Tatum has heard those arguments before. The grandfather of 15 does not get consumed with the 鈥減hilosophical鈥� 鈥� how he describes evidence that voucher programs tend to benefit wealthy white families, do not significantly improve learning and were once proposed by segregationist white lawmakers trying to undermine integration.

In his mind, nothing is worse than the trauma Black families have experienced in public schools or the fact that too many students in his hometown of Fort Worth cannot sufficiently read.

Tatum views the real problem as Texas forcing Black children to exist in a toxic educational environment. If Black families want to use state resources to exert more control over their kids鈥� education, he said, they deserve an opportunity to do so.

鈥淵ou can get philosophical with me. You can get theological with me,鈥� Tatum said. 鈥淏ut I’m trying to get practical with everyone.鈥� 

鈥淪ame song, different verse鈥�

Voucher programs, where almost all school-age children qualify, have only existed since 2022. In the , vouchers primarily served limited groups, such as low-income students and students with disabilities.

show that vouchers increase the likelihood that students graduate high school and go to college, while others conclude that they lead to small improvements in public schools. Meanwhile, some research also shows students for public schools at high rates. And while older studies demonstrate mixed effects on test scores, research in the past decade shows vouchers leading to .

Despite evidence that vouchers can harm test scores 鈥� the primary metric Texas leaders use to judge public schools 鈥� advocates are standing their ground. Andrew Mahaleris, a spokesperson for Abbott, said the governor believes the program will unlock new opportunities for students to grow.

鈥淎n overwhelming majority of Texans from all walks of life support expanding school choice to all Texas families 鈥� including minorities, Republicans, Democrats, independents, and people across rural Texas,鈥� Mahaleris said. 鈥淭exas is on a pathway to becoming number one in education, and the passage of school choice is an unprecedented victory for Texas families, students, and the future of our great state.鈥�

The will launch at the start of the 2026-27 school year. Almost 275,000 students applied 鈥� demand that exceeded available funding. In a state where about 53% of public school students are Hispanic and 13% are Black, nearly half of voucher applicants are white and 75% previously attended a private school or home school.

To divide the money, Texas will consider the applications of students with disabilities and low-income families first, though students are not fully approved until accepted to a private school. Families have more than 2,200 voucher-approved private schools to pick from, and those schools have the power to accept or deny students as they see fit.

Fears that the program will create two tiers of publicly funded education date back to the 1950s. Two years after the Brown decision, candidates in the Texas gubernatorial race of Black and white children learning together. In a Texas Democratic primary, several hundred thousand voters for school segregation. White Texans Black families, hanging dolls that resembled Black students being lynched.

that advocated for vouchers, a state legislative subcommittee wrote: 鈥淲hile showing great concern for the effect of segregation on the psyches of negro children, the Court neglected to display any concern whatsoever for the effect of integration on Southern white children and their parents.鈥�

In 1957, lawmakers passed bills authorizing the attorney general to in desegregation lawsuits and allowing the governor to where federal troops showed up to enforce integration. A voucher bill, passed by the Texas House, would have to families who pulled children out of integrated schools. When the bill moved to the Senate, a small group prevented passage with the help of a .

One of the opposing senators was Henry B. Gonzalez, whose son Charlie Gonzalez, a former U.S. representative, sees vouchers as a choice to divest from a state education system that serves mostly students of color while propping up majority-white private schools.

鈥淚 always say it’s the same song, different verse,鈥� Charlie Gonzalez said.

鈥淭o me, it really is about segregation. It really is resisting diversity,鈥� he added. 鈥淎m I wrong? I don’t think so. I don’t think my dad was wrong in 1957. I don’t think I’m wrong today.鈥�

鈥淲e can do both鈥�

Lee and Tatum may never find out if the voucher program worsens or improves long-term academic outcomes for Black children because participating schools are not required to administer the same tests as public schools.

Voucher supporters argue instead that parent satisfaction will determine success.

In defending the program during the 2025 legislative session, Rep. Brad Buckley and former Sen. Brandon Creighton expressed confidence that vouchers would not harm public schools or promote discrimination.

鈥淚n harmony, we can lift up our public schools and our public school teachers like never before in historic ways, and we can provide education opportunities that fit the needs and are customized for our individual Texas students,鈥� Creighton said during a Senate debate. 鈥淲e can do both of those at the same time. Those aren’t warring provisions or concepts unless we allow stakeholders to manufacture a narrative that supports such a division, such chaos, such a lack of harmony.鈥�

The two Republicans, who co-sponsored the voucher legislation, did not respond to requests for comment. The Texas comptroller鈥檚 office, which oversees the program, declined to comment.

On the fifth day of Black History Month last year, Sen. Borris Miles occupied the same floor where Henry B. Gonzalez and Abraham 鈥淐hick鈥� Kazen Jr. filibustered seven decades before.

Miles, a Houston Democrat who is Black, reminded colleagues that Southern states proposed school vouchers to avoid integration. He reminded them that states defunded and closed Black schools. He warned that if it happened then, it will happen again.

鈥淚’m sure that history is going to show that this body has created a separate but unequal education structural system and made it law,鈥� Miles said, 鈥渕ade it law by sacrificing the masses for the very few.鈥�

This first appeared on .

Most of Texas鈥� school voucher applications came from white families and children who previously attended a private school or home-school.

The Texas comptroller鈥檚 office, which manages the program, released final applicant data Thursday evening, saying it will continue verifying information before admitting students in the coming months. The program will allow families to use taxpayer funds for private school or home-schooling costs.

Of the 274,183 Texans who applied for vouchers before Tuesday night鈥檚 deadline, 45% are white, 23% are Hispanic and 12% are Black. Low-income families make up 37% of applicants 鈥� defined by the program as a family of four earning $66,000 or less per year. Children with disabilities make up 16% of applicants.

For comparison, 24% of Texas 5.5 million public school students are white, 53% are Hispanic and 13% are Black. About 60% of students are considered low-income 鈥� defined in public education as a family of four earning $61,050 or less annually. Children with disabilities make up 16% of enrollment.

Meanwhile, about 75% of voucher applicants attended a private school or home-school during the 2024-25 academic year. The comptroller did not provide data on students鈥� current enrollment.

The state found nearly 25,000 voucher applications ineligible.

The applicant pool, while not fully reflective of the families who will ultimately receive voucher funds, indicates that taxpayer money will mostly flow to families who, before the program, had already committed to having their children educated in a private school or home-school.

During the 2025 legislative session, state lawmakers and advocates as a benefit for low-income families and students with disabilities fed up with inadequate public schools. Of all applications, 63% came from middle- to high-income families 鈥� 27% of them making at or above $165,000 per year for a household of four.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not surprising that a state as big as Texas has more voucher applicants than other smaller states, especially with such a large marketing budget,鈥� Carrie Griffith, executive director of Our Schools Our Democracy, a public education advocacy group, said in a statement.

鈥淚t鈥檚 also not surprising that so few public school families have applied for a private school voucher,鈥� Griffith added. 鈥淧ublic schools deliver special education services, provide transportation, support extracurriculars, keep kids safe, and prepare them for life. They are one of Texas鈥檚 most effective, unifying public institutions. And the data remains undeniable: Most Texans want strong, fully funded public schools 鈥� not vouchers.鈥�

Travis Pillow, a spokesperson for the comptroller, said Texas anticipates having only enough funding to offer vouchers to children with disabilities and students from low- and middle-income families. Program participants, Pillow believes, will look different than the pool of applicants.

鈥淲e are working on a detailed report that captures all our outreach efforts for year 1, but we know there鈥檚 going to be more work to do to get the word out in year 2 and beyond,鈥� Pillow said. 鈥淲e鈥檒l be looking for opportunities to reach more families we didn鈥檛 reach in year 1 and for ways to build trust in this new program.鈥�

In with voucher programs structured like Texas鈥�, white families with children previously in private school make up the majority of participants.

Most participating Texans with children in private schools will receive about $10,500 annually. Home-schoolers can receive up to $2,000 per year. Children with disabilities qualify for up to $30,000 鈥� an amount based on what it would cost to educate that child in a public school.

Demand for the program exceeds $1 billion in available funding, which means the state will conduct a lottery to determine who can receive vouchers. The state will consider, in order of priority:

• Students with disabilities and their siblings in families with an annual income at or below 500% of the federal poverty level, which includes a four-person household earning less than roughly $165,000 a year (12% of applicants).
• Families at or below 200% of the poverty level, which includes a four-person household earning less than roughly $66,000 (32% of applicants).
• Families between 200% and 500% of the poverty level (29% of applicants).
• Families at or above 500% of the poverty level (22% of applicants); these families can receive up to $200 million of the program鈥檚 total budget. Children who attended public school for at least 90% of the prior school year will receive priority within this group (5% of applicants).

Families must still find private schools 鈥� which are generally not required to accommodate students with disabilities 鈥� to accept their children. Whether families identify a private school will ultimately determine who receives voucher funding. Parents must have their children enrolled in a school by July 15.

Later this month, families will begin finding out if they can receive voucher funding. Most families applied to receive funding for pre-K, though the state deemed half of those applications ineligible.

This first appeared on .

was originally reported by Lauren Nutall of .

ARLINGTON, TEXAS 鈥� In early December, drilling resumed near Mother鈥檚 Heart Learning Center.

Newly installed gas wells dot property at 2020 S. Watson Road, less than one mile from the day care. One day in December, the sound of fracking machinery was so cacophonous that children couldn鈥檛 play outdoors.

For gas companies and stakeholders, the project is . But many Arlington residents and experts say it could come at the expense of the community听鈥� especially its children.

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In January 2025, the Arlington City Council unanimously approved a permit allowing French oil and gas company TotalEnergies to install 10 new gas wells in East Arlington, which has a heavy concentration of Black and Latinx residents. It marked the first time in over a decade that the city council approved a permit for a new drill site after years of community opposition.

Named Maverick, the new site also lies near three schools 鈥� Johns Elementary, Adams Elementary and Thornton Elementary. Five wells owned by the same company already occupy the plot of land near the new drilling site, which the company has owned since 2008.

Hydraulic fracturing 鈥� or fracking 鈥� is used to extract gas by pumping pressurized water, sand and chemicals into bedrock. Texas policymakers have lauded the activity as a boon to local communities, garnering $2.48 billion in state tax revenue in 2025, according to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Arlington is choked with hundreds of these gas wells. The city, which sits atop the Barnett Shale, is a modern-day Golconda. 听

But fracking has drawn sharp criticism from health experts, who say it could be linked to severe conditions like preterm births, congenital anomalies, lung diseases and childhood cancers.

The practice has also elicited backlash because of its role in accelerating the global climate crisis through greenhouse gas emissions. TotalEnergies has been embroiled in legal controversies for years, and its troubles have mounted in recent months. , brought on by a coalition of French environmental groups and more than a dozen municipal authorities.

The company has rejected proposed limits to its fossil fuel production. 鈥淚t makes no sense at all to prevent TotalEnergies [from] producing oil and gas that the global energy system still uses today,鈥� it 鈥淭he courtroom is not the right place to advance the energy transition.鈥�

The 19th interviewed Arlington residents about the impact fracking has had on their lives. They shared their fears about their grandchildren鈥檚 health, their experiences living in neighborhoods impacted by fracking and their reservations about TotalEnergies expanding operations in the city.

Devastated residents throughout Arlington

Ingrid Kelley, 69, has grown tired of the gas wells sprouting throughout North Texas. Several sit less than a mile from her house in East Arlington, and a pungent lingering scent of sulfur and something else that she can only describe as 鈥渞otten鈥� has settled into her neighborhood. She fears what might happen to her 4-year-old grandson, who lives with her and attends Mother鈥檚 Heart Learning Center.

鈥淚 can’t project and trace what all is going to affect him and all those that live around there and all those that are around these sites,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t’s very hard to project what’s going to happen, how many people are going to have increased cancer risk, respiratory disease, cardiac disease 鈥� all the things that go along with being premature or having congenital heart disease that affect you the rest of your life.鈥�

Her grandson 鈥� who was born in Arlington with a congenital heart disease 鈥� has had to undergo intermittent nebulizer treatment since he began attending Mother鈥檚 Heart in 2024, a treatment typically reserved for those who have lung complications. He had no prior respiratory complications, Kelley said. Kelley won鈥檛 open windows at home, fearing contaminated air from nearby fracking sites will seep in.

鈥淲e’re like one big science experiment here,鈥� said Kelley who, in 2016, became involved with . She is now on the board.

Edgar Bunton, who is in his 60s, moved to his home in southwest Arlington six years ago and lives less than 600 feet from more than a dozen wells. His wife began to experience frequent and unexplained migraines. Two of his grandchildren who live near these gas wells have respiratory complications, which Bunton attributes to the wells.

鈥淚 really got on board because of my grandbabies,鈥� he said.

The adverse health effects of hydraulic fracturing on children have been studied over the decades.

鈥淭his is a cumulative risk issue, because this is not just one chemical at a time people are being exposed to,鈥� said Meagan Weisner, a senior health scientist at Environmental Defense Fund and a former public health epidemiologist who has studied health impacts related to oil and gas development in Colorado. 鈥淭his is dozens of chemicals coming from more than just one site because they’re already near other wells.鈥�

According to Weisner, the contaminants released are dangerous to nearby residents not only during the drilling phase, which emits numerous toxic chemicals, but also after.

鈥淭here were a lot of parents that were reporting their children were feeling ill during the pre-production phase,鈥� Weisner said, which encompasses drilling. 鈥淪o it would not surprise me at all if these residents in Texas that are close to these 10 wells experienced adverse health impacts because of their proximity.鈥�

Children in particular are uniquely susceptible to harm. 鈥淲e saw health impacts in children extended out to two miles from the pad,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 don’t know if that would be the exact same in Texas, but we saw adults had reported significant adverse symptoms within a one-mile radius but, for children, it was within a two-mile radius, and that does track along the lines of children are just much more vulnerable.鈥�

The 19th reached out to the City of Arlington for comment. In an emailed response, the city only said that the drill site was approved because 鈥渋t met the 600-foot spacing requirement from protected uses, as outlined in the City鈥檚 Gas Drilling and Production ordinance.鈥�

TotalEnergies did not respond to questions from The 19th.

Before energy companies descended on Arlington, the sprawling land behind Phil Kabbakoff’s house was decorated with oak trees. When the company Chesapeake Energy arrived in his neighborhood, they were leveled and reduced to kindling. Now, a towering drill rig owned by TotalEnergies looms behind the 84-year-old鈥檚 home in their place.

Kabbakoff resides in the Glen Springs subdivision of southwest Arlington, the same neighborhood where Bunton鈥檚 grandchildren developed respiratory illnesses.

“A lot of these houses now are leased, and so people come and go, and we don’t know who they are,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e used to know everybody on the street.鈥�

Like other residents, he was upset that more gas wells were installed by Mother鈥檚 Heart. 鈥淲e were up in arms about it all the way around,鈥� he said.

While Kabbakoff would like to see sustained changes made to fracking practices in the city, he believes that Arlington elected officials will only continue to value the interests of gas companies despite protest.

鈥淭hey’re never going to change, not this council,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey don’t know anything about it. Nobody’s researched it. They could care less. They know they make money from it, and that’s all they’re worried about.鈥�

鈥楽acrifice zones are safe spaces for polluters鈥�

In 2005, landmen arrived to secure land for mineral ownership and drilling rights from Arlington residents. Ranjana Bhandari, founder of Liveable Arlington, was approached and ultimately declined.

鈥淭his is almost 20 years ago,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ecause I was a mother 鈥� I had a young child 鈥� I didn’t think that it made any sense to have that kind of pollution around our children.鈥�

At the onset of the fracking boom in Arlington, Bhandari spent hours poring over reports from other regions that experienced similar fracking booms, hoping for a glimpse of what this new development might mean for her city.

鈥淰ery quickly, they built 56 drill sites here, and they were spread out all over the city,鈥� she said. 鈥淭here’s literally one everywhere you see, one every few minutes.鈥�

She read studies about cancerous pollutants linked to childhood leukemia coming out of states like Colorado. In the neighboring city of Fort Worth, she saw reports that air quality was slowly deteriorating because of drilling-related emissions of benzene, .

鈥淏enzene is a serious, serious cat,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t’s a category one carcinogen. There’s no safe amount of it.鈥�

Bhandari recalled a particular moment when she and her family stopped at a red light directly across from one now-defunct drill site around 2011. Within minutes, she said, they began to feel sick. 鈥淭hat was my first inkling that we weren’t just looking at climate harm.鈥�

The discovery was bleak to Bhandari. By 2015, families in Arlington found themselves overwhelmed by the drill sites鈥� noxious fumes and the effects of fracking that rippled throughout the city 鈥� so much so that they decided to intervene. She created Liveable Arlington the same year.

鈥淲e were a mothers鈥� organization 鈥� mothers and grandmothers concerned about children’s health 鈥� and, through our campaigns and over the years, started learning many new things,鈥� Bhandari said.

鈥淲e focused on the science. We focused on the community,鈥� she continued. 鈥淚 started it as a concerned parent. We were much more focused on fracking near children, fracking near day cares and schools, and so some of our most successful campaigns and most of our advocacy was to stop expansion of fracking around eight sites in Arlington, which are right next to day cares.鈥�

Now 61 years old, she has seen the very problems she once read about penetrate her own community. And the repercussions have been more consequential for some communities than others. More often than not, Bhandari said, they鈥檝e settled disproportionately in majority Black and Latinx neighborhoods, like the one where Mother鈥檚 Heart is located.

鈥淭he burdens of fracking were so unequally distributed,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he other bigger picture that people seem to miss when they say, 鈥業t’s OK to put it somewhere else, just not near me,鈥� is that you always will preserve a safe place. Sacrifice zones are safe spaces for polluters.鈥�