A school district’s purchase of real property is a significant investment of time and money. Once a school district has decided to pursue a real estate purchase, district personnel should engage in project feasibility analyses to assist the board of trustees in deciding which tract to pursue, at what price, and when. To ensure that the district retains the right to use eminent domain in case the negotiations for the purchase fail, the district should carefully follow the process laid out in Chapter 21 of the Texas Property Code. Finally, the approach to negotiating which provisions will be included in, and which will be excluded from, the contract, should always consider any legal requirements and protecting the school district’s interests.

The second former Manor ISD educator to be arrested for injury to a child this month had more than a dozen "overly aggressive physical encounters" with students in roughly two weeks, according to documents obtained by KVUE. Documents show 51-year-old Pamela Craig was arrested for injury to a child earlier this week. Craig is certified as an educational aide by the State Board of Education and, as of Sept. 11, her certification is currently under review by the Texas Education Agency's Educator Investigations Division. view article

Two Lamesa ISD employees were arrested in connection with a law enforcement investigation involving allegations of a breach of computer security, according to a press release by the Lamesa Independent School District Friday morning. The Lamesa Police Department announced in a press release that authorities, along with the Texas Rangers, arrested 54-year-old Auerilo Garza at approximately 5:00 p.m. on Thursday for Criminal Responsibility for Conduct of Another in Lamesa. Shortly after, at around 5:45 p.m., the Martin County Sheriff’s Office apprehended 40-year-old Gabriel Flores for Breach of Computer Security in Stanton, Texas. view article

Two Lamesa ISD employees have been arrested in connection with an investigation involving allegations of a breach of computer security. Lamesa ISD said in a statement Friday morning “the allegations do not involve the disclosure of district data, including student, personnel, or security information.” The district said the investigation involves the alleged deletion of a set of records typically maintained by law enforcement. view article

Palestine High School head boys basketball coach Maurice Montez Heade was arrested Friday at the high school following an alleged assault involving a student, according to the Palestine Police Department. Palestine Police Chief Mark Harcrow confirmed Heade was arrested and charged with assault of a family or household member by impeding breath or circulation, a felony offense. view article

The Public Utility Commission of Texas on Friday gave its approval to a controversial, 370-mile-long transmission line project,  The Howard Solstice transmission line, as it is known, will transport electricity through South Texas to the oil and gas industry in the Permian Basin. The changes the commission seeks should reduce construction through grassland, the commission said.  The line will stretch across 14 counties, including Uvalde, Kerr, Bexar and Medina counties. The five-panel commissioners directed the two transmission companies to work with landowners to make further route modifications after residents expressed concerns that the lines would significantly damage their properties. view article

Dallas lawmakers and civic leaders preview the major issues up for debate for The Texas Legislature and what’s at stake for Dallas residents view article

A Cy-Fair ISD mother is facing two criminal charges after school administrators reported seeing her hit her young son at Moore Elementary and later threaten to shoot up the school, according to court records. Although the charges were filed months ago, records show she has not been arrested. view article

A new legal opinion dictates that all state agencies, in order to receive most forms of federal welfare funding, must report their knowledge of illegal aliens on those programs.  The opinion targets the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and Supplemental Security Income programs, which are received by all states, the District of Columbia, and some U.S. territories.  The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program “is designed to help families with children experiencing low-income achieve economic security and stability,” while the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) “provides monthly payments to people with disabilities and older adults who have little or no income or resources.”   “When a state chooses to participate in TANF, it accepts the obligation to report illegal aliens in the United States,” said Assistant Attorney General T. Elliot Gaiser. “Tax dollars intended to help vulnerable Americans should not perversely encourage illegal entry into the United States, but rather should reinforce our laws and our borders.” view article

A now-former Southwest ISD police officer was taken into custody Sunday after allegedly leaving a child alone for several hours on the Southeast Side, according to the preliminary report. San Antonio police responded at 3:45 a.m. in the 8200 block of Inner Circle Drive after someone reported a child crying in a hallway, the preliminary report said. view article

On September 4, the Texas Supreme Court agreed to hear a public-records dispute after Highland Park Independent School District refused to release an accounting firm’s report about the Seay Tennis Center. The center operates on the Highland Park High School campus. HPISD says it serves school teams, physical education classes, junior programs and adult players. view article

A North Texas principal received a one-year suspension of her educator certificate for failing to report a teacher accused of grooming girls in his 4th-grade class. The teacher was later charged with a double murder in Arkansas, where he had moved for a new teaching job. Heather Shorter was the principal of Donald Elementary in the Lewisville Independent School District when parents reported teacher Andrew McGann for inappropriate behavior toward female students. view article

Law enforcement agencies from across the country search the DPS Flock database once every four seconds, on average. After the Tribune inquired, DPS said it will limit which agencies can access the network. view article

The Coahoma ISD school board has called a special meeting in response to formal complaints by community members. view article

A former Manor ISD elementary teacher was arrested on a charge of injury to a child, according to the district and an arrest affidavit obtained by KXAN. Michael Nathan, a former teacher at Presidential Meadows Elementary, was arrested Wednesday night, according to Travis County jail records. The affidavit says during dismissal hours on Aug. 25, Nathan grabbed a student by the backpack while the child was walking by him and pulled the child back into the building. view article

An El Paso ISD audit found serious financial and oversight problems in the Andress High School band program, including allegations that district purchasing rules were bypassed and that the school’s principal did not provide sufficient oversight. According to the audit, former band director Manuel Talamantes went against district policy by using personal credit cards to front between $20,000 and $25,000 for band expenses and equipment. Talamantes told investigators he did so because the band did not have enough money at the time he needed to order equipment. view article

Saying a decision could exceed her authority, a judge has delayed ruling on a request by four Texas companies for a restraining order to keep the state from enforcing new rules on the sale of hemp-derived products.  State District Judge Maya Guerra Gamble said during an emergency hearing in Austin that she could not immediately decide whether the temporary restrictions would be appropriate given the technical nature of a consumable hemp market that already has been the subject of Texas Supreme Court rulings, state agency statements and law enforcement actions.    "I don't think a district court judge is allowed to do that," she said Friday. "That sounds like I'm rulemaking. That's my problem."  view article

Attorney General Ken Paxton has already announced that he will appeal the decision.  A federal judge in Houston has blocked Texas’ law prohibiting explicit sexual performances in front of children, finding it unconstitutional. Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is now blocked from enforcing the law, is appealing the district court decision to the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.  The law known as Senate Bill 12—dubbed a “drag show ban” by its detractors—regulates sexually oriented performances on public property and in the presence of minors. The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) and local municipalities are responsible for enforcing it. view article

As part of Texas’ settlement, the tech giant behind Facebook and Instagram will apply stricter age verification measures and institute a daily two-hour limit for teens. view article

A West Texas teacher was arrested for alleged sexual misconduct with a Muleshoe High School student. Allegra Fey Mora was arrested in June and charged with an improper relationship between educator and student, a second-degree felony punishable by 2 to 20 years in prison. Mora was a teacher in the Muleshoe Independent School District at the time of the alleged offense, which occurred during the 2025-26 school year. view article

Family of a student abused by 2nd-grade teacher Jason Maldonado wanted trustees to remove administrators who failed to heed warnings. view article

A new school police department is facing questions about hiring, staffing and internal operations – but what’s happening in Leander ISD could be a preview of challenges facing school districts across Texas. view article

Valley View Independent School District has announced the arrest of a staff member on campus on Tuesday, according to a release from the district. In a statement, the district says the arrest is related to alleged conduct prior to the person's employment with VVISD. view article

A federal judge blocked the Texas Dream Act in June after it was challenged by the Trump administration and state officials declined to defend it. view article

Richardson ISD is being sued in federal court over an alleged mishandling of a student with disabilities, court records show. On Aug. 13, the student’s lawyer filed a civil rights lawsuit against the district in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas. In the filing, his attorney alleges that RISD discriminated against the student through repeated failures to provide sufficient supports and accommodations that it itself acknowledged were necessary due to his emotional and learning disabilities. view article

A Dickinson ISD educator charged Wednesday with having an improper relationship with a 16-year-old student at the Juvenile Justice Center was blackmailed into buying him a handgun and giving him about $2,000, court records allege. view article

A teacher's aide in Klein ISD was fired and arrested after being accused of assaulting a 9-year-old child, according to court documents. James Broussard, 26, was charged with injury to a child causing bodily injury on Tuesday, records show. A judge set his bond at $30,000. view article

The following new Texas Education Agency Correspondences have been posted on the TEA website - :https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/TXTEA/bulletins/425efce

A Leon County district court judge has dismissed the state-jail felony indictment against former Centerville Independent School District Superintendent Carole Lee Dickey. The court granted a supplemental motion to quash filed by Dickey’s defense, which argued that the indictment failed to set forth the specific statutory facts required to establish that she violated her duty to report an educator’s misconduct. view article

A Port Arthur ISD student at Memorial High School alleges his coach hit him with a paddle as a disciplinary tool during football practice, raising concerns about corporal punishment in Texas schools. Noah Lopez had only been at Memorial High School in Port Arthur for about two weeks when he says a Saturday football practice turned into what he calls the most humiliating moment of his life. view article

Hood County Constable John D. Shirley posted on Facebook Saturday that he's shutting down Flock cameras countywide to end "warrantless tracking" of citizens "just going about their day."Flock cameras record vehicles as they pass by and capture the license plate, vehicle description, time and date. Flock cameras have become a bipartisan issue in North Texas, with opponents citing concerns about data misuse and privacy loss. Many police agencies, meanwhile, argue the cameras are critical investigative tools.  Shirley's post included the caption, "Today is a good day for the freedom of the people of Hood County," and messaging that he shut down the Flock cameras in the county that had been "constantly scanning and recording regular folks just going about their day." view article

Two former Forney ISD educators are facing federal charges related to their arrests over child sex abuse allegations. Additionally, new arrest documents reveal how Crosby Elementary School's former principal guided a man with a questionable past through changing his name in order to get hired by the district. view article

El Paso and Harris counties joined cities in Tennessee and Ohio in the suit arguing the new requirements are unconstitutional and would cost millions to implement. view article

Dallas Fort Worth International Airport canceled plans to install a facility commonly used for Islamic prayer after Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday threatened to withdraw state and federal funding as Houston’s mayor defended George Bush Intercontinental Airport’s amenity.  Abbott sent a letter to the North Texas airport’s CEO Christopher McLaughlin, as well as the mayors of Houston, Dallas and Fort Worth, stating his office was in the process of reviewing all grant funds over facilities in their cities’ airports. He also sent a letter to U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy to refer the airports for federal investigations. view article

Texas can enforce the state's law requiring Ten Commandments posters in public schools. Here's what to know about the latest legal challenges.  Texas families on Monday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to decide whether state lawmakers can require public schools to display the Ten Commandments.   The formal request comes after the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled earlier this year that Texas’ and Louisiana’s laws mandating such displays did not violate the Constitution’s ban on states prioritizing one religion over others.   “As a parent, I intentionally choose to have my children attend public school because I prefer an educational environment without any religious affiliation,” Nichole Manning, a Dallas-area parent  who is atheist, said in a statement. “In a diverse public school environment, all students should be treated with equal respect, regardless of their religious beliefs, or lack thereof.” view article