AUSTIN, Texas — Austin ISD's police chief was injured in a motorcycle crash Thursday night while escorting a district official.   According to the Austin Police Department (APD), AISD Police Chief Wayne Sneed was escorting the official, who was in a vehicle, when he was hit by one of his officers on a motorcycle. The incident happened at around 8:30 p.m. in South Austin, though the exact location is unknown at this time.   view article

An Iowa school superintendent says two of the six people who died in a fatal shooting that authorities believe was carried out by a relative were students in his district  MUSCATINE, Iowa (AP) — Two of the six people who died in a fatal shooting in Iowa on Monday that authorities believe was carried out by a relative were students in a local school district, the superintendent said.  The suspect, 52-year-old Ryan Willis McFarland, of Muscatine, killed himself when confronted by police later that day, according to authorities. view article

TEA’s latest transparency tool consolidates links to online educator misconduct data, student safety information, and reporting forms.  As promised, the Texas Education Agency continues to launch transparency tools designed to inform parents and protect students from misconduct by school employees.  The latest tool, announced Tuesday by the TEA, is the Student Protection Resource Center—a web page that consolidates links to online educator misconduct data, student safety information, and reporting forms in a single spot.  “These resources reflect our commitment to transparency and fostering trust in our schools,” said Levi Fuller, the first TEA Inspector General for Educator Misconduct. “The dashboard gives communities access to critical information, while the resource center brings together the tools and guidance school systems need to respond quickly and appropriately when concerns arise.” view article

It's an extension of the district's back to school "Safe Start" initiative, this time called "Project Safe Start Summer." view article

Cypress-Fairbanks ISD is notifying the public that it is holding a full-scale safety exercise on Wednesday at Rowe Middle School and the Berry Center. The exercise, in collaboration with the Cy-Fair ISD Police Department and other local first responders, will test the district and public safety partners’ response to an active campus threat. view article

Lockhart Independent School District is rolling out a districtwide initiative aimed at reducing technology use and expanding free play for the 2026–2027 school year. The Lockhart ISD Board of Trustees approved the “Childhood Unlocked” initiative during Monday night’s meeting, a move officials said supports students academically, socially, emotionally and physically. view article

As the El Paso Independent School District nears a decision on hundreds of potential layoffs and the Ysleta Independent School District continues to navigate financial strain, the Socorro Independent School District (SISD) is reporting signs of financial progress. view article

McALLEN — The federal government is ramping up efforts in Texas to combat the spread of New World Screwworm, a pest that could devastate the cattle and wildlife industries in Texas and the nation.  The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a slew of new initiatives and investments to monitor and prevent the spread of screwworm, which is traveling north through Mexico and was detected about 370 miles south of the U.S./Mexico border in July.  Screwworms are parasitic flies that lay larvae in open wounds of live, warm-blooded animals, causing them serious harm and, potentially, death. view article

Kinney County Judge John Paul Schuster declared a local state of disaster over the threat posed by the New World screwworm. The order from the border county activates local and interjurisdictional emergency management plans, authorizes use of all necessary county resources, and directs county officials to coordinate with state and federal agencies on surveillance, reporting, public information, and response.  The declaration is effective for up to seven days unless extended or renewed by the commissioners court. In addition, Kinney County asked that the governor temporarily relax certain state commercial‑feed regulations in the Agriculture Code to allow medicated “feed‑through” products used to control screwworm to be approved and deployed more quickly if normal licensing and labeling requirements would slow the emergency response.  The most recent cases of New World screwworm were detected in a 5-year-old-goat in the Mexican state of Coahuila, which neighbors Texas. Since then, a total of 32 cases have been monitored, 19 of which remain active.   The U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized the emergency use of over-the-counter injection drug Doramectin for use in livestock to prevent any infection in the United States. view article

Officials tested a sample from La Pryor in Zavala County at a lab in lowa, confirming the infestation, Secretary Brooke Rollins said. view article

A measles outbreak in upstate South Carolina has forced more than 150 unvaccinated children out of the classroom and into quarantine, state health officials said. The South Carolina Department of Public Health said in an Oct. 9 briefing that the state has recorded its 11th measles case of the year, after a new infection was confirmed in a child from Greenville County, the state’s most populous county. view article

DPS says the new requirement will help ensure commercial drivers can communicate effectively and operate safely on Texas roads.  The Texas Department of Public Safety has ended Spanish-language testing for commercial driver’s license applicants, a move that comes just over a month after Attorney General Ken Paxton launched an investigation into trucking schools accused of certifying non-English-speaking drivers.  Effective June 1, all commercial driver’s license (CDL) and commercial learner permit (CLP) knowledge examinations in Texas must now be administered in English only, according to DPS.  The change aligns Texas testing procedures with federal English language proficiency requirements and is intended to ensure commercial drivers possess the communication skills necessary to safely operate large vehicles on public roads.   8:15 AM8:44 AMPreviously, CDL knowledge tests were offered in both English and Spanish. view article

None of the 11 people infected in South Carolina had been vaccinated for the disease, according to the state health department.  A measles outbreak in upstate South Carolina has forced more than 150 unvaccinated children out of the classroom and into quarantine, state health officials said. view article

Parents who say they were separated from children for refusing to affirm transgender identity are still fighting states in court.  Alexandra Lyaschenko hasn’t spoken with her teenage daughter in nearly two years.  In June 2024, she had been taking her daughter to see a therapist for her struggles with borderline personality disorder, hyperactivity, and trauma from bullying at school.  At first, Lyaschenko thought the therapist might be able to help with those issues.  Instead, according to Lyaschenko, that same therapist accompanied Child Protective Services on June 3 to take her daughter away from their home in Mt. Shasta, California.  “She left barefoot, and my husband did the talking, because I developed an immediate physical reaction,” Lyashcenko told The Epoch Times.  “I grabbed my son. It was the scariest day of my life.” view article

How many people in the hospital system die because of “medical errors”?The definitive answer is elusive because calculations are opaque. The definition is also opaque — “medical errors” can be consistent with everything from surgical and diagnostic errors to equipment failures and hospital-acquired infections. But general calculations indicate 22,000 to nearly 100,000 people die in hospital systems annually due to medical error, according to studies from the National Institutes of Health and National Academy of Medicine. That’s the equivalent of something like two large planes crashing every day, said Dr. Frank Filipetto, a current faculty member and the former dean of the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine at UNT Health Fort Worth. view article

School officers across the state turned to heavy-handed tactics on children, often in response to minor misbehavior, investigation shows. view article

Three students are hospitalized after a band tower collapsed in Frisco on Thursday evening, officials said. According to Frisco ISD, the band tower at Centennial High School, which was approximately 30 feet tall, collapsed, injuring several students who were climbing on it. The injured students were transported to local hospitals for treatment, Frisco ISD officials said. view article

The El Paso tent camp has seen at least three detainee deaths, a measles outbreak and nearly 50 detention standards violations in less than a year of operation.  A group of legal and civil rights organizations late Friday sued U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement over conditions at Camp East Montana in El Paso, the country’s largest immigration detention facility.  “Camp East Montana is nothing short of a civil rights catastrophe,” Kyle Virgien, senior staff attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union’s National Prison Project, said in a statement. “We’re suing to ensure that no other human being has to endure the inhumane treatment that the Trump administration has inflicted on our clients.”  A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security called claims of inhumane conditions at the facility “categorically false.” view article

A Huffman ISD mother says she never knew her 15-year-old son may have been struggling with bullying before he took his own life. Now, as parents and students in the community speak out, mental health experts are warning families to pay attention to signs that children may be suffering in silence. view article

A former Magnolia ISD teacher is now in custody and charged with an improper relationship between an educator and a student. Court documents reveal that 40-year-old Jason Maldonado worked at Magnolia Parkway Elementary school as a second-grade teacher. view article

Montgomery County Precinct 5 Constables are actively investigating allegations involving a former second-grade teacher that was employed at Magnolia Parkway Elementary School in the Magnolia Independent School District. The investigation began in December 2025 following a report received through Child Protective Services alleging inappropriate contact between the teacher and students. Since that time, Montgomery County Precinct 5 Investigators have conducted multiple forensic interviews with students, interviewed witnesses and school personnel, and contacted numerous families associated with the classroom. view article

Austin police and some city officials are calling for the reinstatement of automated license plate readers after learning the technology may have aided Manor police in locating the three teenagers suspected in a weekend shooting rampage – but privacy advocates say they’re still not worth the tradeoff. The calls mark the latest turn in a yearslong fight over whether Austin police should be allowed to resume using the cameras, which City Council members declined to keep last year after an internal audit raised oversight concerns and privacy advocates warned the technology could amount to mass surveillance. view article

A former Marshall ISD educational aide is accused of hanging a student upside down by their feet and swinging them around, causing the child to hit their head, according to an affidavit. Rachel Ann Kirspel, 37, of Marshall was arrested Monday and charged with injury to a child. According to the affidavit, the incident occurred May 14 at the Marshall Early Childhood Center, located at in the 1600 block of Meadow Street. view article

A Cleveland ISD teacher is facing charges after investigators say she had an improper relationship with a student, according to district officials and jail records. view article

The Killeen Independent School District has lifted all of its campuses from a “secure” status implemented earlier Friday. view article

A Fort Davis Independent School District principal has been let go following an incident where an intruder was on campus. On May 13th, an intruder entered the elementary school property without authorization through an open gate. The district says despite having received extensive training on the District’s Emergency Operations Plan, the principal failed to follow the mandated security protocols. view article

The New World Screwworm case was detected roughly 119 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border — at nearly the same latitude as Zapata, Texas. view article

Attorney General Ken Paxton said on Friday that Texas Children’s must also pay $10 million to the state because it illegally provided transgender care to kids. view article

Hemp flower buds and rolled joints were piled into boxes and tucked out of public view by the staff of Dream Planet Smoke and Vape last Thursday after the state filed an appeal that triggered an hourslong ban.  By Friday, the items were back on the store shelves, and are flying off them once again as customers rush to stock up while they still can, said Leroy Sims, a cashier at the East Austin smoke shop.  “My boss is really big on keeping us all informed because he’s aware of the fact that Texas can’t really make its mind up,” Sims said. “We just put stuff in a box until they can make a decision because we can’t send it anywhere else to sell.” view article

The virus is transmitted to humans via rodents, or it can be passed by very close contact between people. An outbreak of hantavirus on a cruise ship has many asking whether the disease could spread beyond the vessel where three people died and many passengers left before the disease was identified onboard.  Two Texans, who have returned to the U.S., were among those on the ship.  Dr. Catherine Troisi, a professor of epidemiology at UTHealth Houston School of Public Health, says hantavirus risks don’t resemble those of COVID-19. Listen to the interview above or read the transcript below. view article

In Austin, a city with an abundance of drag shows, one monthly showcase offers a unique platform — and launch pad — for emerging talent.   “You get to see future legends get their start, and other people just flourish and find their niche.”   That’s how “Big Tits, Bigger Dreams,” or BTBD, was described by co-host and regular performer Reyah Sunshine at this month’s event on May 2. BTBD takes place on the first Saturday of every month at Oilcan Harry’s, Austin’s oldest gay bar, and is hosted and created by one of Austin’s most well-known drag artists.  view article

A rural Texas county on Tuesday approved a one-year pause on the construction of new data centers in unincorporated areas, citing public safety and public health concerns.  The 3-2 vote by county commissioners in Hill County, roughly 55 miles south of Fort Worth, appears to be the first by a Texas county to issue a moratorium on the rapidly expanding industry.  Residents and local officials had aired concerns about how a proposed 300-acre development by the Dallas-based developer, Provident Data Centers in north Hillsboro could impact the quality of life in the rural county through noise pollution and consuming large amounts of water and electricity. view article

An employee at Cleveland Ninth Grade Center has been charged with having an improper relationship with a student, according to an email sent to parents late Wednesday. In the email, which a parent forwarded to Eyewitness News, Cleveland ISD said it recently became aware of the alleged relationship and that Cleveland ISD police began investigating. view article

An altercation involving Longview ISD students has resulted in a student being taken to a hospital Tuesday. The altercation took place at the Longview High School, with staff and law enforcement responding immediately, the school said in a release. view article

The Guardians of the Children, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to advocating for abused children, now has a presence in Angelina County through the Rayburn Chapter, led by Chris Dooley.  The Guardians, alongside other local organizations, recently planted 60 pinwheels at the courthouse — one for each child abuse survivor who went through the system in 2025.  “We are currently intaking children in Angelina County,” Dooley said.  Here’s how it works: Guardians are referred to children through Harold’s House or the district attorney’s office. They get to know the children in question and serve not as counselors or therapists but adult role models and friends to the vulnerable. view article