It’s getting harder to afford living in Texas — even as incomes and educational attainment grow and poverty declines.  Despite the state’s robust economic growth since the start of the decade, incomes in Texas haven’t kept pace with the nation at large, U.S. Census Bureau data released Thursday show. And the state’s housing costs have outpaced income growth, leaving a greater share of Texas renters and homeowners spending a bigger chunk of their pay to keep a roof over their heads than they did before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. view article

School districts across North Texas announced plans Wednesday afternoon to keep schools closed Thursday or reopen them. Some have since changed their mind. After a winter storm hit Dallas-Fort Worth over the weekend many schools and universities canceled class Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. view article

Hours after touring the Dilley detention center housing 5-year-old Minnesota boy Liam Ramos on Wednesday, San Antonio’s state and federal lawmakers gathered outside City Hall to update the public on his status — and to lay out their limited leverage for stopping such arrests under a Republican-controlled government.  Hours after touring the Dilley detention center housing 5-year-old Minnesota boy Liam Ramos on Wednesday, San Antonio’s state and federal lawmakers gathered outside City Hall to update the public on his status — and to lay out their limited leverage for stopping such arrests under a Republican-controlled government. view article

School districts across Central Texas will resume normal operations Wednesday after closing for several days due to winter weather, with officials warning of lingering icy conditions on campuses. Austin ISD announced all schools and offices will operate on normal schedules Jan. 28, with extracurricular and after-school activities resuming. The district said tardies related to weather and traffic delays will be excused. view article

The Houston Independent School District is responding after reports of some campuses experiencing heating issues on Tuesday. What they're saying: According to a statement, Houston ISD said, Houston ISD Facilities and Maintenance teams responded immediately to any campus that had HVAC-related issues today, and our teams have been making progress throughout the day." view article

Several Houston ISD campuses experienced heating issues on Tuesday as students returned to class following the weekend's winter storm. On Monday, after announcing that the district would resume normal school operations on Tuesday, Houston ISD said it had begun preparations and taken proactive steps to brace for the storm's impact. In a message on the district's website, it said it would begin district-wide heating checks at 4:30 a.m. on Tuesday morning and that it would be easy to identify and address any issues as soon as they arose. view article

Texas’ population grew at a slower pace in 2025 than in previous years, according to new federal data. Nearly 32 million people now live in the state. view article

Agriculture is the second largest industry in Texas, which is home to more than 230,000 farms. Here’s a look at who’s running in the 2026 Democratic and Republican primaries to oversee the agriculture department and where they stand on the issues. view article

Many school districts across Central Texas have decided to cancel classes amid a winter storm lingering on Monday, January 26. However, a few in the San Antonio area have decided to stay open, leaving parents mixed with support and disapproval. Some parents are upset with the Poteet Independent School District for keeping its schools open during the Texas winter storm. The district posted its decision on Sunday, January 25, writing that school will resume as normal on Monday. Buses will run at a regular time, according to its Facebook post. view article

The games' organizers said it was not associated with the group Gov. Greg Abbott has targeted. view article

Developers must now address water concerns on a tight deadline after previously submitting vague concept plans.The Hood County Commissioners Court conditionally approved an incomplete data center plan after roughly two hours of residents urging their local officials not to move forward due to water concerns. view article

Austin Community College leaders credit the college’s free tuition pilot and efforts to increase retention and center student needs for its growing enrollment. view article

Classes have been canceled for tomorrow, Friday, Jan. 23. All schools and administrative offices will be closed. District employees will have a planning day working from home. Meals will be provided to Lubbock ISD students from 10-11 a.m. at Coronado, Estacado, Lubbock and Monterey high schools. view article

As a winter storm watch is in effect for the the metroplex with sleet expected to begin Friday night, Frisco ISD has canceled all after-school activities on Friday, Jan. 23, and Saturday, Jan. 24. An arctic cold front will be moving into the metroplex early Friday with cold rain transitioning into a wintry mix in the early afternoon. Widespread wintry precipitation, with the majority being sleet, is expected throughout Saturday and potentially into Sunday morning, according to the National Weather Service. view article

An estimated 1,000 students from Tyler High School and Legacy High School walked out of classes on Tuesday afternoon in protest of recent ICE activity. The protest remained peaceful and students who participated created signs and posters urging local law enforcement to end their partnership with ICE’s 287(g) program, which Smith County commissioners approved in February 2025. view article

Three of Bexar County’s four largest school districts have closed schools in recent years or are eyeing future consolidations. The largest school system, Northside Independent School District, had not previously broached the topic — until Tuesday. District leadership presented Northside’s board of trustees with an “optimization plan,” which emphasized the need to scale back as the district faces enrollment declines.  view article

Lubbock Independent School District (Lubbock ISD) is monitoring reports from the National Weather Service (NWS) about a potential winter storm that could affect much of the Texas Panhandle and South Plains later this week. The Lubbock ISD operations team is in contact with representatives from the Lubbock NWS office and is preparing for possible delays, cancellations and early dismissals. view article

Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District leaders severed negotiations for a similar Islamic Games event earlier this week.  Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District to terminate any negotiations to host the 2026 Houston Islamic Games after the event was promoted as being sponsored by the New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. view article

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is calling on Cy-Fair ISD to sever its ties with the 2026 Houston Islamic Games, which he says were scheduled for October at Bridgeland High School. In a Wednesday letter to the Houston-area school district, Abbott directed Cy-Fair ISD to terminate any agreements with the Houston Islamic Games. He said the district needed to do so because the New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) was allegedly one of the sponsors for the youth athletic competition. In November, Abbott declared CAIR — a nationwide civil rights organization — to be a foreign terrorist organization and barred the group from purchasing land in Texas. view article

San Antonio’s largest school district is on track to launch a new virtual high school next year, although it isn’t clear who will run the daily operations. Northside Independent School District officials hoped to get board of trustee approval on a vendor that will oversee the virtual operations but had to delay a vote until March. view article

The Conroe ISD Board of Trustees upheld a grievance that will keep the children’s book "I am Billie Jean King" out of elementary school libraries because the biography mentions that she’s gay and in a same-sex marriage. The board took the action on Tuesday following an executive session after the complaint about the book was filed in October. A new state law requires the board to act within 90 days of when the challenge is submitted to the district. view article

Alamo Heights ISD parents are voicing anger after the district scrapped a visit by a children’s author whose nonfiction book about the history of glitter and plastic was deemed too radical under Texas’ anti-DEI law. The cancelation is just the latest disruption prompted by Republican-backed Texas Senate Bill 12, which has wreaked havoc for public education from the elementary school through the university level. view article

United Independent School District (UISD) is launching a new program offering remote and hybrid learning options for high school students as the district addresses declining enrollment and community needs. The United Connected program for grades 9-12 offers a fully virtual option and a hybrid model that combines in-person classroom instruction with online learning. “This is huge for our community it’s not offered in any other district in our community. We also have open enrollment. So this is not only offered to people in our community but this is offered to any student in the state of Texas who wants to enjoy the benefits of United Independent School District,” said Aliza Flores Oliveros, UISD school board vice president. view article

It wouldn’t be the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo without bad weather.  The winter storm expected to blow through North Texas on Friday and Saturday may disrupt attendance and impact outdoor activities such as the midway or petting zoo; otherwise, the stock show will operate as usual, spokesman Matt Brockman said.   “If it’s sleeting or icy, no one’s going to want to be outside, so those parts of the show will likely close,” he said.   The Fort Worth Stock Show closed in 2021 during COVID-19, a year when Texas had a record cold wave, and during World War II. However, those closures were not weather related.  view article

As President Trump marks one year back in office, his EPA has proposed rolling back key air and climate protections, which experts say has already begun to strain Texas’s air quality and public health. view article

Grapevine-Colleyville ISD officials “severed negotiations” with an Islamic group seeking to host an all-ages sporting tournament at a local high school, a district spokesperson confirmed to the Fort Worth Report on Tuesday. The decision came after school administrators were “made aware” that one of the event’s sponsors, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, was designated a terrorist organization by the governor last year, GCISD spokesperson Nicole Lyons said in an email.  But organizers of the Islamic Games said CAIR “has never been, and is not presently, a sponsor, partner, affiliate or supporter” of the sports festival.  view article

Grapevine-Colleyville ISD officials “severed negotiations” with an Islamic group seeking to host an all-ages sporting tournament at a local high school, a district spokesperson confirmed to the Fort Worth Report on Tuesday.  The decision came after school administrators were “made aware” that one of the event’s sponsors, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, was designated a terrorist organization by the governor last year, GCISD spokesperson Nicole Lyons said in an email.  But organizers of the Islamic Games said CAIR “has never been, and is not presently, a sponsor, partner, affiliate or supporter” of the sports festival.   “We are deeply concerned that a sporting event for children is being targeted,”  Salaudeen Nausrudeen, president of Islamic Games, said in an email to the Report. “It is our hope that better minds prevail.” view article

The U.S. Postal Service warns it may not postmark mail the same day it takes possession of it. The deadline to register for the March 3 primary is Feb. 2.  Texans seeking to register to vote or cast a ballot by mail may not want to wait until the last minute, thanks to new guidance from the U.S. Postal Service.  The USPS last month advised that it may not postmark a piece of mail on the same day that it takes possession of it. Postmarks are applied once mail reaches a processing facility, it said, which may not be the same day it’s dropped in a mailbox, for example. view article

KNUE-FM) Most Texans have some good and probably a few bad memories of going to high school, there is a lot going on during that time in your life. Although not all high schools in Texas are the same, some are small and others are gigantic. It would take a huge school and a large number of faculty members to make everything work. Let’s dig into just how big the largest public high schools are in the state of Texas.  When I graduated high school, there were a little over 300 people in my graduating class. It wasn’t huge, but it still felt like the graduation ceremony took forever when reading off all those names. view article

ABILENE, Texas — Before the sun even came up, the Abilene community gathered at Hardin-Simmons University, and not just for a warm breakfast, but for a morning of prayer and reflection. It’s all part of the Big Country’s MLK Prayer Breakfast to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  Big Country residents filled the Johnson Building at HSU before dawn for the 4th Annual MLK Big Country Breakfast, bowing their heads in unity and celebrating a man who helped change the nation. view article

SPRINGDALE, Ark. — Thousands of layoffs at two different Tyson Foods plants will take effect Tuesday, a move that's expected to significantly affect the country's beef processing.  According to Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filings, Tyson sites in Texas and Nebraska are expected to lay off nearly 5,000 employees. view article

City council members rejected a tax incentive for the property.  Brenham residents packed a recent city council meeting to voice their concerns about the foreign-owned data center project planned in their community. City council members unanimously voted against an ordinance that would grant the project a tax break after hearng public comment.  One local news outlet estimated that more than 100 residents attended the meeting.  As previously reported, data centers are surging in number around Texas, often drawing opposition from local residents. view article

Developers of The Meadow, formerly branded EPIC City, can submit missing documents and have their application re-evaluated.  Collin County officials have rejected a development plan submitted for the proposed Islamic community The Meadow, formerly branded as EPIC City.  Officials found the application was incomplete but said the plan will be re-evaluated if and when all required items are submitted.  County Judge Chris Hill announced the update on Thursday via social media.  Hill said Community Capital Partners (CCP) officially submitted its development plat to Collin County Development Services on December 23, initiating the county review process.  CCP is the team behind the controversial community planned for property in unincorporated areas of eastern Collin County and western Hunt County. view article

n the realm of Texas newspapers, one media mogul now rules them all—or close to it at least. Last February, Hearst Communications acquired the Austin American-Statesman. Seven months later, the privately held New York-based conglomerate bought up the Dallas Morning News, one of the country’s last locally owned metro papers, for just over $80 million—outbidding the notorious hedge-fund outfit Alden Global. Considering the alternative, this was seemingly welcome news for the journalism business in Texas, where over 200 local papers have shuttered in the past 20 years. Under the vampiric regime of Gannett/Gatehouse, the Statesman was bled and hollowed out into a husk of a paper. And the Morning News had steadily slipped away from its glory days, when it had bureaus around the world, and was mired by turnover, layoffs, and declining print circulation.  view article

The university said content of the graduate course, which was already underway, was not adequately disclosed, forcing the cancellation. The professor disagrees   Texas A&M University canceled a graduate ethics course three days after the semester began, saying Professor Leonard Bright did not provide enough information to let administrators determine if the course meets new standards for discussing race and gender  Bright disputes that characterization. view article