As the omicron surge dwindles, school district officials move to lift mask mandates.
Brian Lopez
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.
Posted in
Public Education
GOP Texas House members ask schools not to buy books from vendors that supply “pornographic” materials
State Rep. Jared Patterson, R-Frisco, and 26 other House colleagues want school leaders to boycott vendors that have offered what conservatives deem pornography.
Posted in
Texas 2022 Elections
Several Texas Republicans against “critical race theory” advance in State Board of Education primary races
All 15 seats of the State Board of Education are up for grabs in November, and there were more than 50 candidates vying for their parties’ nominations.
Posted in
Politics
Texas now requires new charter schools to ensure they won’t teach critical race theory
The new requirement applies to charter schools set to open in August. The agency did not elaborate why this one law needed a separate assurance.
Posted in
Politics
NAACP Legal Defense Fund files federal civil rights complaint against Carroll Independent School District
There are currently three other open investigations into racial and gender discrimination at Carroll ISD.
Posted in
Public Education
Texas schools are majority Hispanic. There’s been a shortage of bilingual teachers since 1990, and the pandemic made it worse.
The pandemic is driving educators away from the profession, including key areas such as bilingual education.
Posted in
Politics
As culture wars envelop schools, North Texas sees a superintendent exodus
Several departures come after months of contentious fights over teaching about slavery, requiring pandemic precautions and limiting what books kids can access.
Posted in
Demographics
Gov. Greg Abbott taps into parent anger to fuel reelection campaign
Abbott promises a “parental bill of rights” amendment to the Texas Constitution. Current education code already provides an array of parent protections when it comes to schools.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Long before Colleyville synagogue standoff, Texas houses of worship were preparing for violent attacks
Attacks on houses of worship like the 2017 Sutherland Springs shooting have prompted many religious groups to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars and countless hours to bolster security.
Posted in
Coronavirus in Texas
Omicron is surging, but most Texas schools are resuming classes as planned
School officials are putting a greater emphasis on testing, vaccinations and masking to combat the variant’s spread.