Austin ISD has added new protocols in the wake of student walkouts over ICE operations and immigration enforcement. Austin ISD saw students from 14 of its campuses walk out of class on Jan. 30 and since then, students from multiple Central Texas school districts have followed suit. view article

The DEA has threatened to classify kratom as a Schedule 1 substance, the same as heroin.
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DPS has established security priorities for the next five years. 
Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Department of Public Safety have released an updated state framework for setting homeland security priorities for the next five years.  “Protecting Texas from a broad range of threats and vulnerabilities is a critical mission that continues to evolve,” said Gov. Greg Abbott. “The Texas Homeland Security Strategic Plan provides a comprehensive and updated framework to prevent, protect against, respond to and recover from attacks, disasters and other emerging threats.”   The plan speaks to protecting the state’s critical infrastructure, while mitigating risks and hazards from continued population growth, natural disasters, crime, and cybersecurity attacks. view article

A Trinity ISD teacher has been arrested and placed on administrative leave after he and his wife were arrested in a Munchausen-by-proxy case. Jon Thomas Holcomb, 51, of Trinity, and his wife, Paula Nicole Geurin Holcomb, 46, are each charged with injury to a child. view article

A former Crowley ISD teacher is in jail and has been charged with having an improper relationship with a student. What we know: 62-year-old Ricardo Ortiz was arrested Thursday, Feb. 5 by Fort Worth police. A letter from Crowley ISD says once it found out about the allegations, Ortiz was removed from contact with students and is no longer employed by the district. view article

Donna Independent School District (Donna ISD), in partnership with South Texas College (STC), have launched its first-ever dual credit cohorts in Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) and Automotive Technology, taking place at the Mid-Valley Campus this spring 2026 Semester. This milestone partnership marks a significant step forward in expanding career and technical education opportunities for Donna High School students by providing access to college-level instruction, hands-on training and industry-aligned certifications while students are still in high school. view article

A detected gas leak caused a Waller ISD elementary school to evacuate and two other schools to shelter in place Friday morning, according to officials. The Spring Creek Fire Department said a gas leak was detected at Roberts Road Elementary, and as a precaution, everyone inside the building was safely evacuated as emergency responders addressed the issue. view article

Buda police said they are investigating an altercation between a juvenile and a man during Hays CISD student walkouts.Buda police arrested a Kyle man Tuesday in connection with a physical altercation involving a minor during Hays Consolidated Independent School District student walkout on Monday.  The altercation occurred during the walkout and involved a female minor and an adult man, according to a statement from the Buda Police Department. view article

Critics of the nondisclosure agreements say they have protected abusers and institutions for decades.   Cindy Clemishire was 12 years old on Christmas night in 1982 when a traveling evangelist staying with her family first abused her.  According to Clemishire, the sexual abuse continued over the next four years. She eventually told her family and the abuse stopped. But her abuser, Robert Morris, went on to found Gateway Church in Texas, which became one of the largest megachurches in the nation.  When Clemishire sought restitution in 2007, Morris’ attorney offered her $25,000 if she would sign a nondisclosure agreement that would prevent her from speaking publicly about the abuse. She refused. view article

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Buda police have arrested a man after a brawl between him and students during Monday’s student-led anti-ICE protest in Buda.  Chad Michael Watts, 45, was arrested Tuesday afternoon and charged with two counts of assault causing bodily injury, the Buda Police Department said in a statement. The investigation is ongoing to determine if additional charges will be filed, the department said.  KXAN received a video showing the physical confrontation, as Johnson High School students were protesting recent immigration enforcement actions.  Additional video, viewed by KXAN, shows the man right after getting out of his truck, pushing past students and singling out a teenage girl. The two exchange punches before the student is pushed to the ground. We are working to verify who recorded that video. view article

A student was rushed to the hospital on Monday after being stabbed at Grand Oaks High School, school district officials said. According to Conroe ISD, a student suffered three shallow stab wounds after an altercation with another student occurred at 9 a.m. on campus at Grand Oaks High School, which is located at 3800 Riley Fuzzel Road in Spring. view article

Former Celina Independent School District teacher and coach Caleb Elliott has officially been indicted by a Collin County grand jury on felony charges. Charges include possession of child pornography, invasive visual recording and sexual performance by a child. Elliott is accused of secretly recording boys in the Moore Middle School locker room. view article

A stabbing was reported at a Conroe Independent School District high school Monday morning. Around 9 a.m., Conroe ISD police said a student was stabbed three times during a fight at Grand Oaks High School. view article

A student was rushed to the hospital on Monday after being stabbed at Grand Oaks High School, school district officials said. According to Conroe ISD, a student suffered three shallow stab wounds after an altercation with another student occurred at 9 a.m. on campus at Grand Oaks High School, which is located at 3800 Riley Fuzzel Road in Spring. view article

The cases come amid renewed nationwide scrutiny of the facility following the transfer there of Liam Conejo Ramos, a 5-year-old Ecuadorian boy who federal agents arrested along with his father in Minneapolis. view article

Under House Bill 7, a private citizen who successfully sues an abortion pill provider can receive up to $100,000 from the defendant.  A Galveston County man has filed a lawsuit against a California doctor he accuses of providing abortion-inducing pills to his partner, leveraging for the first time a new Texas law that allows private citizens to sue abortion providers for up to $100,000. view article

Midland ISD has expanded its partnership with Baylor College of Medicine to offer a summer opportunity for rising seniors wanting a career in medicine and health sciences.( view article

Harris County Constable Precinct 4 deputies arrested 18-year-old Nicolas Guillory on January 26 in relation to an incident on December 17, 2025. What we know: Deputies with Constable Mark Herman’s Office say they responded to multiple calls of an unknown man who allegedly exposed his genitals to several students while they were waiting at a bus stop to go to school in the Humble area. view article

Abbott’s declaration comes after close monitoring by both Texas and the U.S. Department of Agriculture on the northward spread of the parasitic screwworm in Mexico.  Gov. Greg Abbott has issued a statewide disaster declaration over the continued northward expansion of the New World screwworm, which has been labeled by state officials as a threat to Texas’ wildlife and livestock industries.  “Although the New World screwworm fly is not yet present in Texas or the U.S., its northward spread from Mexico toward the U.S. southern border poses a serious threat to Texas’ livestock industry and wildlife,” said Abbott. “State law authorizes me to act to prevent a threat of infestation that could cause severe damage to Texas property, and I will not wait for such harm to reach our livestock and wildlife.”  view article

The Northside Independent School District (NISD) said a student was found with an unloaded gun on Thursday at Harlan High School. The student is expected to be arrested on a charge of places weapons prohibited, according to the district. The district said the student will also face “serious disciplinary consequences.” In a letter sent to families, Harlan High School Principal Richard Yzaguirre said staff and NISD police officers “acted immediately” to locate the student after a report surfaced about a gun in the individual’s possession. view article

An attorney representing a McKinney student’s family revealed new allegations Thursday surrounding the arrest of a high school athletic trainer. Personal injury attorney Paul Herz met with reporters in his Dallas office, sharing additional details about the arrest of a McKinney Independent School District athletic trainer accused of sexually assaulting a student. Herz also raised concerns about whether the trainer was properly licensed in Texas at the time of the alleged incidents. view article

A Southwest Independent School District bus overturned during the ride to school early Tuesday morning. The accident happened just before 8 a.m. along Southwest Loop 410 and Old Pearsall Road on the Southwest Side. Authorities said the bus barely struck a curb while entering the highway before flipping onto its left side and skidding a short distance. About 33 students were on board and were headed to Legacy High School. view article

A Harris County judge has dismissed the case alleging a Klein ISD cosmetology teacher operated a sex trafficking ring with her son, after prosecutors said they did not have sufficient evidence. Kedria Grigsby, 43, a former cosmetology teacher at Klein Cain High School, was arrested in 2024 and charged with three counts of compelling prostitution of a minor and three counts of trafficking a child. Grigsby was accused of assisting in her son's efforts to recruit teen runaways from the school district for prostitution. view article

SAN JUAN, Texas – From Monday, July 25, to Saturday, July 30, the Texas Health and Human Services will carry out Operation Border Health/Preparedness (OBHP). OBHP is a program that sets up sites around the Rio Grande Valley, offering residents free health services. Services include general physician services, immunizations, screenings, sport physicals, dental services, vision services, and more. Although assisting the public in maintaining their health is a goal of OBHP, the underlying purpose is to assist the community in preparing for disasters. State Sen. Juan Hinojosa, D-McAllen, said Operation Border Health Preparedness allows state, local, and nonprofit entities to practice setting up and operating health clinics that may be needed in the case of a public health emergency, while providing free care to the community. He said services include medical exams, immunizations for children and adults, sports physicals for students, health and diabetes screenings, and dental and vision exams. “Operation Border Health Preparedness is a great example of a smart policy that not only ensures we are prepared for future public health crises, but also provides an immediate public benefit in the process,” Hinojosa said. view article

Police officials and law enforcement experts say there’s no guarantee that officers will follow their training and confront a shooter — no matter how much training they have.  In the weeks since officers in Uvalde waited more than an hour to confront a gunman who killed 19 children and two adults at an elementary school, police departments across the state have asked themselves a crucial question: If they faced a similar situation, would they be able to quickly stop the gunman?  The images of parents and students pleading with officers to take action at Robb Elementary School on May 24 before a tactical team of federal agents finally breached a classroom and fatally shot the 18-year-old gunman deeply disturbed Marfa police Chief Estevan Marquez. view article

An increase in COVID-19 cases among children in El Paso is resulting in more absences at some schools. "Last week my child had a light cough so we decided not to take her to school to not expose the other children to her cough," said El Paso ISD parent Guerrero Garcia. view article

Some Brenham ISD parents are concerned about the safety of their children aboard school buses, while the district struggles to find people to drive them. Overcrowding and longer run times for some buses has parents worried and debating whether their children should be using school transportation. One parent, Cassi Harrison, has pulled her three children off after she says her daughter had to sit on the floor of her elementary school bus, which had students from two bus routes. Harrison says the safety of the children needs to be addressed. view article

Saying positive cases of COVID-19 are climbing to "very high rates" in the district, the Richardson ISD says they are once again temporarily implementing a mask requirement for everyone inside K-12 schools. In a letter to parents, the district said active cases of COVID-19 have increased from 49 on Dec. 7 to 1,089 on Jan. 6, an increase of more than 2100%. The previous pandemic-high number of positive cases in RISD was 367 on Sept. 3. view article

They say participation is strictly voluntary, but the Fort Worth Independent School District is offering a one-time $500 incentive to employees who get fully vaccinated against COVID. Administrators say the money is an ‘effort to provide safe and healthy environments for students, staff and visitors’. view article

In a video address by the Conroe ISD superintendent, Dr. Curtis Null gave an update on the latest numbers on Friday as COVID-19 cases in the district continue to climb. Dr. Curtis Null, the Conroe ISD Superintendent, said, “We need to do something as a community to help make sure that we can keep our schools open and keep our kids safe.” According to the district in the first two weeks of the school year, there have been over 1,100 reported positive cases that included 962 students and 176 staff. view article

Houston ISD students and employees who refuse to wear masks when the school year begins could face discipline and be forced to temporarily learn online under new guidelines released by the district. With exceptions and reasonable accommodations made for people with a “documented medical disability,” the district’s updated back-to-school plan, released Friday evening, says that those who refuse to comply with the mask mandate will face consequences. view article

As COVID-19 cases rise and schools begin to come back into session, the safety of students is a top priority for many school districts. According to a social media post by Jim Hogg County Judge Juan Carlos Guerra, JHC ISD is taking precautions to protect students against rising case numbers. view article

The largest school district in the San Antonio area said Wednesday they will not be enforcing a mask mandate, “for now,” despite a county-wide requirement issued Tuesday that students and teachers wear masks in public schools. A Northside Independent School District spokesperson told KSAT that the district will continue to “strongly encourage the use of facemasks by students, staff, and visitors to district facilities and events” but stopped short of requiring them. Meanwhile, they will “closely monitor the changing guidelines and directives” and alert the public of any change to the policy before the district’s start date on Aug. 23, the spokesperson said. view article

Round Rock ISD parents are divided on COVID-19 masking protocol, with some fighting to keep mask rules in place for their schools and others wanting it to be a choice. The school district's board of trustees recently considered relaxing the mask requirement, but voted to keep the rules in place through the end of the calendar year. view article

All Fort Worth ISD employees will soon be offered a COVID-19 vaccine. Superintendent Kent Scribner sent the information to employees on Thursday. The email states that all employees, including part-time and substitute workers, will be invited to sign up for the vaccine through the school district. view article