HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Houston ISD officials are expected to finalize plans on Thursday to close 12 schools.  RELATED: Houston ISD to close 12 schools in upcoming 2026-27 school year, district says  This comes as multiple elected officials have asked the district to delay the decision, and, according to the district, 76 people have already signed up to speak at the HISD board meeting.  District officials told Eyewitness News that there have been 24 meetings with HISD families over the past two weeks.  ABC13 spoke with parents, teachers, and elected officials who say two weeks is not enough time for families to meaningfully participate in this process.   HISD provided a list of these schools as being slated to close: view article

AUSTIN, Texas – February 4, 2026 – The Texas Education Agency (TEA) today announced the selection of Levi Fuller as Inspector General for Educator Misconduct. As Inspector General, Fuller will closely oversee the enforcement of Educator Misconduct policies and processes within TEA to help foster safe learning environments for all of Texas’ nearly 5.5 million public school students.  “I look forward to the impactful work Levi Fuller will do in service of our students, families and school systems,” said Texas Education Commissioner, Mike Morath. “With more than a decade of experience holding bad actors accountable, Levi will help root out the flawed few that sew distrust among families and school communities while helping to restore confidence in the teaching profession.”   view article

Green bars filled the charts showing more students are testing at grade level than they were a year ago, the latest sign that Fort Worth ISD is making progress.  Superintendent Karen Molinar presented the district’s latest benchmark exam results for school trustees’ review on Tuesday.  The February assessments show gains across several subjects — including reading, science and social studies — offering a snapshot of how students are performing ahead of this spring’s STAAR tests.  “There’s a lot of green in this report and a lot of improvement,” trustee Anne Darr said. view article

The Pflugerville Independent School District (PfISD) is considering plans to close and rezone some of its campuses in 2027 to align resources amid enrollment and budget concerns. On Thursday, the district presented its district optimization draft scenarios during its Board of Trustees meeting. District leaders said no decisions have been made regarding the scenarios, and are encouraging community members to weigh in on the proposed plans. view article

The threat of a Texas Education Agency takeover was triggered by one of the North Texas district’s schools that had been underperforming for years.  Texas declined Thursday to take over the Wichita Falls school district, which had been at risk of receiving the state’s most severe form of intervention over years of academic underperformance.  Kirby Middle School triggered the potential of a takeover. Under the state’s school accountability system, five consecutive years of unacceptable ratings at a single school allows the Texas Education Agency to replace a district’s locally elected school board with a state-selected board of managers or order the closure of the struggling campus. view article

As it faces a $10.9 million deficit, the Pflugerville Independent School District has proposed a slate of options to cut costs. A draft plan presented Thursday named six schools that trustees should consider closing in 2027 — but consultants emphasized Pflugerville officials have not made a decision yet. view article

WACO, Texas (KWTX) - On Tuesday night, board members of Midway ISD unanimously voted to close Speegleville Elementary after the 2025-2026 school year. Superintendent Dr. Chris Allen gave another presentation outlining the decisions that went into the school’s closing, following the presentation he gave outlining potential changes on February 17th.  Dr. Allen said in the meeting that declining enrollment across their district and Texas and lack of flexible funding from the state are main factors leaving them without options and financial pressures.  He also spoke on the difficulties with fixing all repairs needed for the school building, which opened in 1954. view article

GOP-led fight over allegations of student indoctrination raises tensions at University of Houston -   After two legislative sessions in which Republican lawmakers hammered universities as bastions of liberal indoctrination, campuses across Texas are restricting how race and gender can be taught and requiring instructors to present controversial subjects in a “balanced” way. At the University of Houston, some deans have taken the unusual step of requiring faculty to certify they “teach, not indoctrinate.”  Tensions on campus escalated when a five-page checklist instructing professors on how to review course materials was unveiled last month during a faculty council meeting.  Some professors say the checklist, coupled with the certification effort, reinforce what they see as a false premise: that indoctrination is widespread in university classrooms. They say the efforts pressure instructors to avoid controversial topics altogether. view article

WACO, Texas (KWTX) - On Tuesday night, board members of Midway ISD unanimously voted to close Speegleville Elementary after the 2025-2026 school year. Superintendent Dr. Chris Allen gave another presentation outlining the decisions that went into the school’s closing, following the presentation he gave outlining potential changes on February 17th.  Dr. Allen said in the meeting that declining enrollment across their district and Texas and lack of flexible funding from the state are main factors leaving them without options and financial pressures.  He also spoke on the difficulties with fixing all repairs needed for the school building, which opened in 1954. view article

The Fort Worth Independent School District is getting a new superintendent as part of the recent state takeover. Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath in a statement Wednesday said the Texas Education Agency "will move forward with the selection of a new superintendent" to replace Karen Molinar, who was named superintendent in March 2025. view article

Texas declined Thursday to take over the Wichita Falls school district, which had been at risk of receiving the state’s most severe form of intervention over years of academic underperformance. Kirby Middle School triggered the potential of a takeover. Under the state’s school accountability system, five consecutive years of unacceptable ratings at a single school allows the Texas Education Agency to replace a district’s locally elected school board with a state-selected board of managers or order the closure of the struggling campus. view article

State Rep. Barbara Gervin-Hawkins, D-San Antonio, attended a Judson ISD school board meeting Thursday night after she said she recieved multiple complaints from constituents. “I’m looking for other jobs just in case,” Gervin-Hawkins said. “I don’t know what’s going to happen if you guys continue to meltdown, things are not gonna go well for any of us.” view article

The state-appointed board of managers voted unanimously Thursday on the closures, which will take effect after this school year. The decision came two weeks after Superintendent Mike Miles surprised the community with the recommendation, leading to fierce criticism about a lack of public engagement. view article

Some professors are waiting for a final decision on acceptable instruction under a review policy created by the system’s new chancellor.  Six weeks after the spring semester began, the Texas Tech University System Board of Regents met Thursday but did not publicly answer a central question facing professors: What, exactly, are they allowed to teach about race, gender and sexuality?  \\The new chancellor, Brandon Creighton, upended longstanding academic norms late last year when he directed faculty to recognize there are only two sexes, male and female; barred them from promoting the idea that individuals are inherently racist or sexist; and required regents’ approval of flagged course content. Since then, courses were canceled, readings removed or shortened and instructors required to sign statements agreeing not to teach certain material unless regents approve it. view article

Tammy Fogle is asking the Texas education commissioner to order the removal of the books.  An Abilene resident is asking the Texas education commissioner to order the removal of 13 sexually explicit books from Abilene Independent School District libraries, saying district officials ignored a new state law meant to protect students from “profane” and “indecent” material.    In a 15‑page petition filed Monday, Tammy Fogle accuses Abilene ISD’s board and library review committee of applying the wrong legal standard, defying Senate Bill 13, and keeping books that even district reviewers admitted contain graphic rape, child sexual abuse, and other explicit content involving minors.​ view article

A Killeen ISD senior is among approximately 15,000 high school students nationwide selected as finalists in the 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program.   Alexander Kim, a senior at Harker Heights High School, learned last week that he advanced to finalist standing in the prestigious academic competition. As a finalist, Kim now has the opportunity to compete for one of approximately 7,500 National Merit Scholarships that will be awarded later this spring.  view article

The Texas Education Agency is investigating Brownsville ISD over allegations of helping facilitate walkouts by high school students to protest Trump administration immigration enforcement tactics. In a statement, BISD said the walkouts were well within the students’ constitutional rights. view article

Nearly 300 people want a seat on the Texas-appointed board replacing FWISD’s nine locally elected trustees, but none of their names are publicly known.  The Fort Worth Report requested the list of applicants seeking to serve on the board of managers through Texas’ open records law. Agency officials declined to release it, requesting an opinion from the Texas attorney general’s office.  That lack of transparency frustrates Fort Worth parents and residents as Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath prepares to appoint the managers in the coming weeks. The appointees will govern the district during the state takeover intended to bring significant academic gains for students. view article

The TEA determined allegations against James Whitfield, superintendent at Treetops School International in Euless, were unfounded.  Read more at: https://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/education/article314766005.html#storylink=cpy view article

Prosper’s second franchise location of The Tutoring Center is set to open this spring. What you need to know: Owner Xin Dong said the center will open for sessions Feb. 23, with an official opening date of March 2. Dong said the center will offer one-to-one instruction in reading, math and writing for kindergarten through 12th grade students, with a focus on increasing students' academic skills and concentration span. view article

The state’s takeover of the Beaumont Independent School District is moving forward, with potential members of a new Board of Managers getting their first in-depth look at what leadership under state control could require. About 60 applicants attended a two-day training session over the weekend led by the Texas Education Agency. The agency will appoint a Board of Managers to govern the district as part of the intervention process. view article

Nearly 300 people want a seat on the Texas-appointed board replacing FWISD’s nine locally elected trustees, but none of their names are publicly known.  The Fort Worth Report requested the list of applicants seeking to serve on the board of managers through Texas’ open records law. Agency officials declined to release it, requesting an opinion from the Texas attorney general’s office. That lack of transparency frustrates Fort Worth parents and residents as Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath prepares to appoint the managers in the coming weeks. The appointees will govern the district during the state takeover intended to bring significant academic gains for students.  view article

This fall, the Austin Independent School District will close 10 campuses as it tries to cut a $65 million deficit after 15 years of declining enrment.  Get Digital Access and Stay Informed.  For decades, these campuses anchored neighborhoods, shaped families and kept traditions alive as new students grew and learned. view article

Opponents warned the policy’s vagueness could push professors to self-censor and leave students less prepared for the workplace.  The University of Texas System’s Board of Regents unanimously approved Thursday a rule requiring its universities to ensure students can graduate without studying “unnecessary controversial subjects,” despite warnings it could leave them less prepared for the real world.  The rule also requires faculty to disclose in their syllabi the topics they plan to cover and adhere to the plan, and says that when courses include controversial issues, instructors must ensure a “broad and balanced approach” to the discussion. view article

Opponents warned the policy’s vagueness could push professors to self-censor and leave students less prepared for the workplace.  The University of Texas System’s Board of Regents unanimously approved Thursday a rule requiring its universities to ensure students can graduate without studying “unnecessary controversial subjects,” despite warnings it could leave them less prepared for the real world.  The rule also requires faculty to disclose in their syllabi the topics they plan to cover and adhere to the plan, and says that when courses include controversial issues, instructors must ensure a “broad and balanced approach” to the discussion. view article

Houston ISD is preparing what Superintendent Mike Miles calls “the next stage in changing the American public education system” with the launch of two Future 2 schools, a pilot program designed to rethink how students learn in the age of artificial intelligence. view article

The Midway Independent School District is considering closing Speegleville Elementary School to address financial challenges after recent state funding laws reportedly left the district underfunded. Superintendent Dr. Chris Allen addressed the school board, staff and parents Tuesday night about how recent state funding has limited the district’s spending options. view article

Two Everman ISD schools will be run by a Colorado-based nonprofit next year after the district board voted to outsource operations at two campuses whose continued failing accountability score performance could put the entire district at risk of state takeover. The district will pay Third Future Schools millions of dollars to take over Townley Elementary and Baxter Junior High schools for the next three years. The TEA gave Townley F grades in 2023 and 2024 and a D in 2025. It gave Baxter F grades all three years. Five years of failing grades puts the district at risk of state takeover. view article

Hitchcock Independent School District has been placed on an “Accredited–Warned” status by the Texas Education Agency after receiving failing financial accountability ratings for two consecutive years. In a letter sent to families Tuesday, the district said its accreditation status for the 2025–2026 school year was changed due to deficiencies identified in the state’s financial accountability rating system. view article

De Zavala Elementary will close at the end of the 2025-2026 school year if the Fort Worth Independent School District board approves the move in March. Fort Worth ISD said its Superintendent, Dr. Karen Molinar, plans to make the recommendation, which will be reviewed in the March 24 board meeting. Students from Dassett Montessori school will move on to the campus sooner. view article

Second grader Felix Moreno isn’t sure if he’ll see his friends at school next year.   Felix and his family thought they had one more year at De Zavala Elementary before it closed its doors for good in 2027. Now, they have three months left at their FWISD school.  De Zavala is closing in May so Daggett Montessori, a kindergarten through eighth-grade school, can move out of its structurally unsound building and into the nearby elementary campus, Fort Worth ISD leaders said. The school board will formalize the decision in March.  Kelly Moreno, Felix’s mom, said the decision frustrates parents. view article

A Euless charter school superintendent has been cleared of wrongdoing following a months-long investigation by the Texas Education Agency.  Last summer, a contingent of parents at Treetops School International accused James Whitfield, who joined the campus in 2023, of financial mismanagement and of failing to report an alleged incident of physical abuse by a teacher.  At the time, the parents were vocal in their displeasure with Whitfield’s leadership, but there was little in the way of concrete evidence to support the claims against him. Much of the uproar came after Treetops administrators voted to adopt a four-day school week and eliminate seventh through 12 grades beginning with the 2025-26 school year.  The school now operates as a kindergarten through sixth grade campus. view article

Longer school days. Fewer electives. Improved test scores, at least for a time. Inside the pricey new experiment aimed at turning around schools with failing grades.  WICHITA FALLS, Texas — Texas school districts are opting to outsource their failing campuses to third-party operators in a little-known, but increasingly common attempt to avoid state takeovers, a WFAA investigation found.  In exchange for paying millions to a third party with the promise of improved accountability scores, the TEA grants a two-year reprieve from state intervention and sends the district additional public education funds to help cover the cost. In these scenarios, superintendents and school boards keep their jobs and retain at least partial local control over their schools — all of which would be at risk with a state takeover.   Texas school districts are opting to outsource their failing campuses to third-party operators in a little-known, but increasingly common attempt to avoid state takeovers, a WFAA investigation found.  In exchange for paying millions to a third party with the promise of improved accountability scores, the TEA grants a two-year reprieve from state intervention and sends the district additional public education funds to help cover the cost. In these scenarios, superintendents and school boards keep their jobs and retain at least partial local control over their schools — all of which would be at risk with a state takeover.  view article

Austin Independent School District will run its own special education department without state oversight for the first time in nearly three years. Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath on Tuesday told the district he was removing the two state-appointed monitors who have overseen AISD ever since 2023 when a state investigation found the district repeatedly missed strict state and federal deadlines for evaluating kids suspected of needing special education services. view article

Two Everman ISD schools will be run by a Colorado-based nonprofit next year after the district board voted to outsource operations at two campuses whose continued failing accountability score performance could put the entire district at risk of state takeover. The district will pay Third Future Schools millions of dollars to take over Townley Elementary and Baxter Junior High schools for the next three years. The TEA gave Townley F grades in 2023 and 2024 and a D in 2025. It gave Baxter F grades all three years. Five years of failing grades puts the district at risk of state takeover. view article