TEL AVIV, Israel — Israel and Hamas have agreed to the "first phase" of a ceasefire deal intended to end the devastating Gaza war that unleashed the deadliest fighting ever between Israelis and Palestinians.   The two sides were set to sign the agreement in Cairo after all-day negotiations Wednesday that stretched into the early hours of Thursday in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. view article

After years of students—and even their parents—ignoring the rules, a Houston boys' school is taking a dramatic new approach: bring your phone to school, and they will destroy it. view article

Leaders of the effort say they moved to rural Hood County for its quiet country charm, which was shattered by what locals call “that roar” from the facility.  HOOD COUNTY — Danny Lakey and his wife have spent countless evenings sitting on rocking chairs on their front porch, watching the sun slowly dip behind the cows grazing on their neighbor’s ranch.  It was the calm country life they dreamed of in 2021 when they bought their log home, tucked into the woodlands of rural Hood County, southwest of Fort Worth. Danny Lakey proudly calls their home their “personal Cracker Barrel,” where they have more cows and horses as neighbors than people.  But ever since a noisy cryptocurrency facility moved in about half a mile away in 2023, he said their rocking chairs have mostly sat empty. Other nearby residents also say they don’t spend much time outside anymore because of what many call “that roar.” view article

A Central Texas school district is returning dozens of books to classroom shelves after pulling them for review last month to ensure they comply with a new state law. Leander ISD decided to temporarily pause and review the 40 books because of Senate Bill 12, which went into effect on Sept. 1. view article

Officials at North East Independent School District have decided to defend their cell phone policy amid an ongoing review from the Texas Education Agency.  A new state law requires schools to bar students from using cell phones and other electronic devices during the school day.  The NEISD board voted in August to define the school day as instructional time, which allows students to use phones at lunch and during passing periods. view article

Faculty have spent weeks seeking clarity on new restrictions, which have often been issued by word of mouth. A written Q&A was rescinded.  As a viral video of a Texas A&M student and professor debating the legality of discussing gender identity roiled the College Station university and spurred a political firestorm, deans hundreds of miles away at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Lubbock quietly rolled out new instructions for faculty.  Teaching doctors were told to remove words like “transgender,” “DEI” and “affirmative action” from their curricula, a professor told The Texas Tribune. Simulated patient exams that included scenarios with transgender patients were suddenly in question. view article

Attorney General Ken Paxton has criticized the Texas Medical Association for allegedly rejecting recent federal advisory guidance that emphasizes patient and parent choice in pediatric COVID-19 vaccination decisions, framing the move as an anti-science shift that sidelines informed consent and parental discretion.  Paxton urged Texas physicians to oppose what he called a quiet policy change and pledged continued alignment with President Donald Trump and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on expanding medical freedom and patient-centered decision-making. view article

Situated at Old Celina Park, the new playground officially opened Oct. 4 when city leaders turned out to the park for a ribbon-cutting ceremony.  The park was designed for children ages 2-12 and features a variety of attractions. The Old Celina Park Playground includes a water feature, a multiuse court, slides, swings and climbing equipment.  The project cost totaled more than $7.6 million, with funding coming from 2021 and 2024 bond funds, and park fees, according to the city. view article

wFaculty have spent weeks seeking clarity on new restrictions, which have often been issued by word of mouth. A written Q&A was rescinded.  As a viral video of a Texas A&M student and professor debating the legality of discussing gender identity roiled the College Station university and spurred a political firestorm, deans hundreds of miles away at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Lubbock quietly rolled out new instructions for faculty.  Teaching doctors were told to remove words like “transgender,” “DEI” and “affirmative action” from their curricula, a professor told The Texas Tribune. Simulated patient exams that included scenarios with transgender patients were suddenly in question.   Professors decided to delay lessons that contained those terms, in part because “there isn’t a synonym for transgender.” But they were concerned: Removing such instruction would undercut the school’s mission to prepare health workers for underserved West Texas communities, the professor said.   “The Hippocratic Oath is ‘first do no harm,’ right? But if students aren’t prepared, then they are going to do harm,” the professor said. view article

The Texas Stock Exchange is expected to launch in Dallas next year, as economists wait to see if “Y’all Street” is big enough to support the exchange and challenge New York’s dominance in the financial sector.  The Texas Stock Exchange on Tuesday crossed its latest hurdle toward becoming a direct competitor to the dominance of the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq.  The announcement that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission had approved the Dallas-based startup to operate as a national exchange was met with celebration by Texas lawmakers, including Gov. Greg Abbott, who declared “Texas is swiftly becoming America’s financial hub.”  The hype around the Texas Stock Exchange, or TXSE (pronounced Tex-ee), has been building since the June 2024 announcement that the exchange intended to launch with $120 million in backing from investment large firms like BlackRock and Citadel Securities, making it one of the most well-funded attempts at a new national exchange in decades. view article

Tommy Williams will serve until regents name a permanent president.  Texas A&M System Regents have named Tommy Williams interim president of the College Station campus.  Williams, a former state legislator, is returning to Texas A&M. He previously served as the Vice-Chancellor for Federal and State Relations for the Texas A&M System after leaving office in 2013. He later worked for Gov. Greg Abbott and currently runs a public affairs company. view article

We are thrilled to announce the launch of the Austin Current, a bold, new local newsroom built to keep pace with Austin’s explosive growth. Our mission is simple but urgent: deliver journalism that is innovative in approach, uncompromising in standards and deeply connected to the needs of our community.  When we imagined this newsroom, we envisioned more than headlines. We want to become a civic resource that closes information gaps, builds trust through collaboration and provides timely and relevant coverage that matters to Austinites. view article

A long-awaited list of which Austin ISD campuses will close for the 2026-2027 school year will be released to parents at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. In an Instagram video, Superintendent Matias Segura said the late-in-the-week announcement is “very very intentional.” view article

An investigation into Humble ISD Superintendent Roger Brown found that no policies were violated after he allegedly said he wanted to “lynch the mayor" for being without power during Hurricane Beryl. Back in late March, Brown made the remark at a leadership meeting with more than 100 employees while discussing the lives of settlers in western U.S. Henry Phipps, the district's chief education support services officer, later at a board meeting brought up that he was offended by the use of a racially charged word. view article

Houston ISD is moving to phase out direct contact with external news media in favor of a district-controlled communication strategy, according to the 2025–2026 District Improvement Plan obtained by Chron. The shift comes amid mounting community frustration over transparency, ongoing staffing cuts and broad district changes. view article

Local leaders see data centers, which help power the world’s shift to artificial intelligence, as a way to keep their towns open. Residents worry their way of life — and water — is at stake. view article

Adrian Musquiz, a parent at Parkdale Elementary School and the General Manager of Peter Piper Pizza, was honored with Waco ISD's Community Partner Award for September, as announced on Thursday, Sept. 30. Each month, Waco ISD honors individuals within the community who make a positive impact on students through its Community Partner Award. view article

Ian Roberts was a beloved leader in the Des Moines public school system. Then parents learned he was an undocumented immigrant with a criminal past.  DES MOINES — When the Des Moines School Board announced former Olympic athlete Ian Roberts as superintendent in 2023, he was praised as a “career educator” and a “proven champion for creating equitable opportunities for all students to thrive.”  More than two years later, his tenure at Iowa’s largest school district has come to an abrupt end. In late September, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Roberts, surprising the education world by revealing him as an undocumented immigrant with a final order of deportation. Investigators said they found him with “a loaded handgun, $3,000 in cash and a fixed blade hunting knife.” view article

A Pollok woman died following a Monday wreck in downtown Lufkin, Lufkin police confirmed. Morgan Wright, 40, had been taken to the hospital following a two-vehicle wreck around 1 p.m. Monday. Wright was a speech pathologist at Lufkin ISD, and the district offered condolences to her family and friends on Tuesday. view article

Kingsville ISD is facing a major shakeup after the district confirmed two volleyball coaches were removed from their positions. The decision has prompted the Kingsville Athletic Booster Club to dissolve, raising questions about the future of support for student-athletes. view article

President Donald Trump is asking the Supreme Court to revive his controversial policy to deny birthright citizenship to children born in the U.S. to undocumented immigrants and to visitors on short-term visas.  In petitions submitted to the high court on Friday, Solicitor General D. John Sauer asked the justices to hear arguments on the issue early next year, which would likely lead to a ruling by June. view article

During a short meeting, the regents of the Texas Tech University System appointed State Sen. Brandon Creighton as its new chancellor and chief executive officer.  The vote was unanimous. “This is a historic day for Texas Tech University System,” Regent Chairman Cody Campbell stated after the vote on Tuesday. “I know that we’re all looking forward to working together with our new chancellor to further the advancement of our system.”  The appointment is effective November 10. view article

The plant is projected to power more than 180,000 homes by 2028.  NRG Energy has once again secured a major taxpayer-backed loan to construct a power plant near Baytown.  Gov. Greg Abbott announced Friday that NRG Energy will receive a $562 million low-interest loan through the Texas Energy Fund to build a new natural gas power plant near Baytown. The 721-megawatt facility is projected to generate enough electricity to power more than 180,000 homes during peak demand and is expected to come online in 2028. The loan carries a 3 percent interest rate and will be repaid over 20 years.

Texas Scorecard obtained a seven-page letter from the Texas chapter of the American Association of University Professors—part of the Texas American Federation of Teachers—addressed to faculty at the 12 Texas A&M University System campuses. view article

Many federal employees are required to continue working without pay, though furloughs — or the usual uptick in workers calling in sick — could disrupt some services. view article

DIBOLL — Career technical education director Joshua Slack presented a new partnership with Georgia-Pacific to train students through Angelina College using DISD robotics and engineering equipment during the Diboll school board’s monthly meeting Monday evening inside the district’s administration boardroom.    Slack said Diboll is very family-oriented, and students want to stay in town with well-paying jobs.  The program will allow students to pursue two certifications: a 22-hour electrical apprenticeship and a 20-hour electronic technology certificate, thus rendering them eligible for jobs with Georgia-Pacific upon graduation. Slack said Georgia-Pacific is an important community partner that needs a sustainable worker pipeline.  The board unanimously approved the program’s initiation, which will start in October with 12 lessons.   Assistant superintendent Katherina Crager presented a report on the district’s rating through the Texas Education Agency’s. Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas (FIRST). The 2024-25 school year rating was calculated based on data from fiscal year 2024. view article

The day after the four-term Houston lawmaker launched his statewide bid, his former chief of staff, Odus Evbagharu, announced he was running to succeed his former boss in the Texas House. view article

A high-profile IPO this week could make former Texas Gov. Rick Perry—and his family—very wealthy. Fermi Corp., a nuclear-powered artificial intelligence startup co-founded by Perry, is expected to hit the Nasdaq with a valuation that could top $8 billion. view article

Communities In Schools (CIS) is a dropout prevention program funded in part by the Texas Legislature and administered by the Texas Education Agency (TEA). CIS works in collaboration with school personnel to develop and provide a comprehensive Integrated Student Support (ISS) program uniquely tailored to address unmet academic and non-academic barriers to students' success. CIS staff complete a thorough campus needs assessment to identify campus needs, gaps in service, available resources, and the goals and priorities of the campus administration. CIS staff use this information to then develop a plan of service to address identified needs.  view article

Darcy Hood mailed her voter registration application to the Tarrant County elections department in July, after she turned 18.  Months later, her application still hasn’t been processed. And it’s unclear when it will be.  With the Oct. 6 deadline to register to vote in November’s constitutional amendment election approaching, tens of thousands of Texans are in the same situation, waiting in suspense for their applications to go through, a process that normally takes a few days or weeks  In interviews, private conversations, and emails, county elections officials from across the state point the finger at the state’s voter registration system, known as TEAM, which has long had functionality problems. They say that after the software was overhauled in July, the problems began proliferating: Voters’ previous addresses override their new ones, their voting precincts don’t populate correctly, and sometimes the registration information doesn’t save at all. view article

In May 2023, Miller wrote a letter urging university leaders to reconsider admitting a student whom he described as a “biracial Latina,” who was also the daughter of his political associate.   In January, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller declared “war on DEI,” directing his agency to stop working with businesses that embrace policies that give advantages to people based on “race, color, sex, sexual preference, religion, or national origin.”  He condemned the Biden Administration for allowing “unfair” diversity, equity, and inclusion policies “to infect all aspects of our federal government, major corporations, financial institutions, the medical industry, and institutions of higher education,” Miller said in a press release.  But in May 2023, he wrote a letter to leaders of the University of Texas at San Antonio and the University of Texas at Austin emphasizing a student’s ethnicity and socioeconomic status as he urged the schools to reconsider her enrollment. view article

President Donald Trump is asking the Supreme Court to revive his controversial policy to deny birthright citizenship to children born in the U.S. to undocumented immigrants and to visitors on short-term visas.  In petitions submitted to the high court on Friday, Solicitor General D. John Sauer asked the justices to hear arguments on the issue early next year, which would likely lead to a ruling by June. view article

Temple ISD supports first-year teachers with classroom supply shopping spree view article

A North Texas high school teacher fed an “ailing” live kitten to a snake in her classroom but did not do it in front of students, according to a message Alvord ISD sent to families in the district. view article

Dozens of books are temporarily pulled from Leander ISD classrooms to make sure they comply with a new state law. The books are now paused for review due to SB 12, which went into effect on Sept. 1. view article