Why all eyes are now on the often ignored Texas Board of Education races
All 15 seats of the State Board of Education are up for grabs in November, and one race in District 7 highlights how critical race theory has become a key issue. Full Story
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Brian Lopez
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Brian Lopez was The Texas Tribune's public education reporter from 2021 until 2024. He covered how policy and politics affect Texas’ K-12 public education system and the nearly 5.5 million kids enrolled in public schools. Previously, he was the Tarrant County reporter at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Brian is a New York native but moved to Texas after high school. He graduated from The University of Texas at Arlington.
Past Contributions
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![The State Board of Education meeting on January 29, 2019.]()
Credit: Emree Weaver/The Texas Tribune -
When Texas students campaigned for a more diverse history course, they got a lesson in politics
Students had been pushing for the State Board of Education to adopt a new, more inclusive social studies curriculum this year. Instead, the board delayed their scheduled update until at least 2025. Full Story
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![Round Rock ISD student Ayaan Moledina, 13, stands outside of Canyon Vista middle school. Moledina testified for more Asian American inclusion and accurate representation of Muslim Americans. Sept. 14, 2022.]()
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Texas has banned more books than any other state, new report shows
Across the country, more books have been challenged and removed as religious and conservative groups target LGBTQ and race issues. Full Story
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![Books at Vandegrift High School's library on March 2, 2022.]()
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Politics and pandemic are driving Texas teachers to consider quitting, survey finds
An online survey of 1,291 teachers by the Charles Butt Foundation shows more teacher dissatisfaction as Texas school districts scramble to attract talent. Full Story
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![At the Advanced Learning Academy at Euclid in San Antonio, second grade students read while their teacher works individually with students. (Starting bottom, then moving clockwise) Samantha Vandervort , Gabriel Lopez, Saiki Rosas, Kyle Perez (in chair) John Schweers (in chair), Tristan Poujol and Matthew Sanchez. Bexar County's school districts are among the most segregated in the state, with boundary lines historically drawn to consolidate resources. San Antonio ISD is working to create more socioeconomic and racial diversity through public school choice measures.]()
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“I’m scared that it might happen again”: Uvalde parents send their kids back to school
The Uvalde school district delayed this year’s start so it could continue improving security. But three months after the state’s deadliest school shooting, only one of eight campuses had an unscalable fence fully installed. Other security measures remain unfinished. Full Story
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![Aiko Coronado helps her daughter Adrianna Medina, 10, put on a necklace as she gets ready for the first day of classes in Uvalde on Sept. 6, 2022. Medina is wearing a shirt with a picture of Adrianna with her cousin and friend Maite Rodriguez from the awards ceremony at Robb on May 24.]()
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High-poverty schools struggle to earn Texas’ highest rating. Some in the Rio Grande Valley break that trend.
The Texas Education Agency has dismissed the notion that the accountability ratings are a poverty rating. As evidence, they point to districts like those in the Rio Grande Valley, which have achieved high marks while serving a high number of economically disadvantaged students. Full Story
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![A student follows along to a lesson about suffixes in English Language Arts Class on Dec. 3, 2020, at Perez Elementary School in Brownsville.]()
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Conservative backlash pushes Texas social studies curriculum review to 2025
The board was initially supposed to update the social studies curriculum by the end of this year. Full Story
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Texas education board moves to delay updates to social studies curriculum after conservative pushback
Opponents of the recommended changes, including Republican legislators, complained that they downplayed Texan and American exceptionalism and didn't present opposing views on the gay rights movement. Full Story
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![Students and teachers walk between classes at Blanco Vista Elementary School in San Marcos on Aug. 23, 2021.]()
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“We’re not done”: Uvalde residents say the fight for accountability won’t stop with Pete Arredondo’s firing
Some parents and community members are calling for more school district employees to be fired and for the state to raise the minimum age for buying an assault rifle. Full Story
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![Uvalde CISD school board members pray before opening a meeting in Uvalde on August 24, 2022.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee Beal for The Texas Tribune -
Uvalde school board fires Chief Pete Arredondo over shooting response, after he calls vote a “public lynching”
Uvalde school officials have faced mounting pressure to fire Arredondo, who received much of the blame for the delay in confronting the shooter during the May 24 massacre at Robb Elementary. Full Story
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![Pete Arredondo, chief of the Uvalde school district police, on a dirt road on the outskirts of Uvalde on June 8, 2022.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy for The Texas Tribune
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