Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing two more North Texas school districts for alleged electioneering related to school vouchers. In two separate lawsuits, Paxton requests a restraining order and temporary and permanent injunctions against Denison ISD and Castleberry ISD. He has filed similar suits against Frisco ISD and Denton ISD. view article

Edinburg CISD filed a lawsuit against a dozen of its insurance companies in response to unpaid claims stemming from Hurricane Hanna, according to a news release. According to a Thursday news release, the district has faced “significant challenges” in obtaining funds for repairs from their insurance company ever since Hurricane Hanna made landfall in July 2020. District spokeswoman Lisa Ayala confirmed in an email a dozen insurance companies were named in the lawsuit. “This impasse has led the district to legal avenues to ensure taxpayers are not left to cover repair expenses,” the news release stated. Details on how much money the unresolved claim was worth were not immediately available. view article

A text thread is the latest in a series of events suggesting election coordination with government schools. North Texas State Rep. Glenn Rogers of Graford has been promoting his anti-school choice stance to government school administrators, who in turn are pushing his stance on faculty and staff. Through an open records request to the Breckenridge Independent School District, Texas Scorecard obtained a January 6 text message Rogers sent to 14 people. view article

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against Frisco ISD, accusing the school district of illegal electioneering. Paxton accuses Frisco ISD of repeatedly pushing for certain policies and political measures. view article

A former Sidney ISD coach accused of engaging in inappropriate conduct with a student has been arrested. Ryan Matthew Grant was taken into custody Sunday for Aggravated Sexual Assault in connection to these allegations. Sidney ISD Superintendent James Rucker says the district received allegations that Grant had been inappropriate with a student February 10, and they immediately contacted the Texas Rangers, suspended Grant’s employment, and had him criminally trespassed from Sidney ISD property and all school events. view article

A former band teacher in the Judson Independent School District was sentenced to 131 years in prison after being found guilty of 20 counts of possession of child pornography and one count of possession with intent to promote child pornography. view article

UVALDE – Texas Department of Public Safety Director Col. Steve McCraw testified before a Uvalde grand jury Wednesday that was seated to possibly bring charges against law enforcement officers for the flawed police response to the 2022 shooting that killed 19 children and two teachers. McCraw’s appearance before the grand jury signals the range of witnesses from whom the grand jury may seek testimony, including both rank-and-file officers and law enforcement agency leaders. It also indicates that grand jurors want to hear from those participants directly so they can question them. McCraw arrived at Garner Field, the local Uvalde airport, around 9 a.m. Wednesday on a state plane before being driven to the Uvalde County Fairplex, where the grand jury is meeting. He made no public comments. view article

The Texas attorney general sued the school district for using official resources to push citizens to vote for “pro-public education” candidates.  Attorney General Ken Paxton filed suit against Frisco Independent School District today for repeatedly using official resources for illegal electioneering purposes.  The lawsuit lists three Facebook posts made by the Frisco ISD Government Affairs Facebook page where individuals were encouraged to “vote for candidates who support public schools and, apparently, who are against vouchers.”  “The posts also appear to influence the reader to vote in a particular party primary,” according to the lawsuit.   The first post, released on Feb. 20, alludes to the fact that candidates will decide whether or not public schools receive appropriate funding, so people should make their voices heard and get out to vote.  view article

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit against Frisco Independent School District on Wednesday, alleging illegal electioneering by using official resources to urge people to vote in favor of a certain policy. The lawsuit claims Frisco ISD's Government Affairs department repeatedly used official resources to stump for certain policies and political measures, using Facebook posts as examples. view article

Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the Biden administration over a pregnant worker protection law that he said was unconstitutional because it passed mostly by proxy vote.   view article

A federal jury found a former investigator with the Waller County District Attorney’s office guilty of money laundering and attempted possession with intent to distribute heroin, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas announced Tuesday. Alex Kassem transported heroin and cartel money in his marked police vehicle, between San Antonio, Houston and Louisiana, according to the release. He was paid $31,000 for transporting the drugs, which he hid in evidence bags, while wearing his Waller County peace officer credentials and a county-issued firearm. “Alex Kassem was a criminal in disguise. He cloaked himself in his trusted position as a licensed peace officer and Waller County DA investigator while working to enrich himself by shamelessly moving money and drugs in his work vehicle and hidden in his police vest,” Douglas Williams, the special agent in charge of the FBI Houston Field Office, said in a statement. view article

A former Judson ISD band director was found guilty Tuesday on 20 counts of possession of child pornography and promotion of child pornography. Mark Mallow could face a maximum punishment of life in prison. The punishment phase of his trial began Tuesday afternoon. view article

An employee with Point Isabel Independent School District was arrested for allegedly sending harmful material to minor, police say. Omar Vera was arrested on five counts of distribution of harmful material to a minor, Port Isabel police confirmed. Vera was employed as a paraprofessional at Point Isabel High School. He has since been terminated. view article

El Paso leaders on Friday denounced Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s threat to shut down Annunciation House, a network of migrant shelters that has been in operation for almost 50 years.  “An attack on one is an attack on all,” U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso, said during a news conference at the shelter’s office, which was packed with supporters.  Annunciation House operates several shelters in El Paso, helping immigrants and refugees who are experiencing homelessness with various needs, including food and housing, and providing information on how to complete legal documents to claim asylum in the United States. view article

In 2021, Texas passed a law restricting large social media companies from banning political posts or users. On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court heard a legal challenge to the state law.  For nearly four hours on Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in a pair of cases that challenge how far states can go to limit the content social media companies allow on their platforms. The lawsuits, which were brought by two tech trade groups, challenge whether Texas and Florida can legally prohibit large social media companies from banning certain political posts or users. Both states passed laws in 2021 to stop what Republican state leaders considered “censorship” of conservative viewpoints. view article

Speaking to a group of East Texas voters in September, state Supreme Court Justice John Devine cast himself as the antidote to his “brainwashed” colleagues on the all-Republican bench. Their “Big Law” backgrounds, he said, had taught them to worry more about legal procedures — “standing, timeliness, or whatever else” — than their duty to uphold the Constitution. “At times I feel like they would sacrifice the Republic for the sake of the process,” Devine said in the speech, a recording of which was obtained by The Texas Tribune. “My concern is that they all bow down to the altar of process rather than to fidelity to the Constitution. And when I say that, it’s not meant to be malice towards my colleagues. I think it’s how they were trained — how they were brainwashed.” view article

The two principals encouraged colleagues to vote for candidates who oppose school vouchers.  Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sued the Denton Independent School District, alleging that two elementary school principals violated state law by encouraging their staffs to vote against opponents of school vouchers in the primary election.  On Feb. 5, Lindsay Lujan, Denton ISD’s director of special programs and principal of Alexander Elementary School, sent an email from her school address urging staff to vote in the upcoming Republican primary. Including a quote from a Texas superintendent warning that “if Texas educators do not come together and vote on a candidate that will support public schools, [they] are in trouble,” Lujan urged staff to do “[their] part.” She included a link to a list of candidates organized by whether they support or oppose public school education. view article

A former University of Texas exchange student is suing Sigma Alpha Epsilon Texas Rho Chapter for more than $1 million for injuries he sustained from an assault by fraternity members at a party last year, according to the lawsuit. The suit, which was filed last month and first reported by The Daily Texan, alleges that the defendants "breached the duty of reasonable care" by not monitoring alcohol consumption and neglecting to monitor the party, maintain security or intervene in the attack. The Sigma Alpha Epsilon Texas Rho Chapter House Corp., the chapter's adviser and president are also named as defendants in the lawsuit. view article

After a short trial, a Texas judge ruled that Barbers Hill school officials are not violating a new state law prohibiting hair discrimination.  ANAHUAC — A Texas judge on Thursday said the Barbers Hill Independent School District can punish a Black student who wears his hair in long locs without violating Texas’ new CROWN Act, which is meant to prevent hairstyle discrimination in schools and workplaces.  The decision came after a monthslong dispute between the district and Darryl George, a junior at Barbers Hill High School who has been sent to in-school suspension since August for wearing his hair in long locs. Legislators last year passed a law called the Texas CROWN Act that prohibits discrimination on the basis of hair texture or protective styles associated with race. Protective styles include locs, braids and twists.  But the Barbers Hill school district successfully argued it can still enforce its policy that prohibits males from wearing hair that extends beyond eyebrows, earlobes or collars even if it’s gathered on top of the student’s head. view article

A Denton Independent School District administrator emailed employees encouraging them to vote in the Republican primary election, decrying school choice and making other politically charged allegations. Sydnie Henry has the details. Lindsay Lujan, the district’s Director of Special Programs, told employees in an "all staff" message that the school "will provide coverage for ALL" staff who "go and vote in the Texas Republican Primary view article

BEAUMONT, Texas — A judge has ruled against the appeal of the Beaumont Independent School District first brought forward in 2022. Layoffs are not expected following the loss of the appeal. This decision comes after a nearly year-long dispute with the Texas Comptroller's Office. A State Office Administrative Hearings (SOAH) judge made the ruling against the appeal. BISD found out about the ruling February 19, 2024, according to a BISD news release. view article

A trial over the Barbers Hill school district’s dress code will test Texas’ new CROWN Act, which prohibits discrimination based on hairstyles.  At 18, Darryl George has spent most of his junior year at Barbers Hill High School separated from his classmates, sentenced to a mix of in-school suspension or class at an alternative education campus. He’s allegedly denied hot food and isn’t able to access teaching materials.  His offense: wearing his hair in long locs.  Since the start of the school year, George and Barbers Hill school officials have been locked in a standoff over his hairstyle — and whether the district’s dress code violates a new state law that prohibits discrimination based on hairstyles.  George, who is Black, says in legal filings that the district’s monthslong punishment has demeaned him and impeded his education.  The Texas Tribune thanks its sponsors. Become one. view article

Keller ISD Superintendent Tracy Johnson asked Fort Worth city leaders at a Wednesday night public hearing at Basswood Elementary to stop the construction of a motel that is planned next to the school. nlopez@star-telegram.com view article

EAGLE PASS—Nearly a month after the U.S. Supreme Court moved to allow federal agents to tear down Texas’ barriers along the southern border, the state’s forces are continuing to hold their ground. Currently, as part of Gov. Greg Abbott’s Operation Lone Star initiative, Texas National Guard and the Department of Public Safety have placed concertina wire and other barriers along the Rio Grande in an effort to deter illegal crossings. view article

Charges against a former Dallas ISD employee who was accused of assaulting a student have been dismissed, court filings show. Former coach Marcel Brooks was shown in a viral Instagram video from April hitting a person identified view article

A former Katy ISD football coach was sentenced to 120 days in jail following accusations that he touched students inappropriately, according to records. Lonnie Teagle, a former Paetow High School coach, pleaded guilty to an improper relationship with a student. On top of the 120 days in jail, Teagle also received eight years of deferred adjudication. view article

A former Katy ISD football coach pleaded guilty to having an improper relationship with a student. Lonnie Teagle, who coached at Paetow High School, had only been employed with the school for six months before resigning in October 2022. About a month later, Teagle was arrested and charged with improper relationship with a student and indecency with a child. view article

Over the objections of two conservative justices, the Supreme Court refused on Feb. 20 to hear a challenge to the admissions policy of a top-rated high school in Virginia that critics say engages in illegal racial discrimination against Asian American students. The decision not to hear the petition in Coalition for TJ v. Fairfax County School Board came after the Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional the use of racially discriminatory admissions policies at U.S. colleges in June 2023. That ruling in Students for Fair Admissions Inc. v. Harvard College ended the use of so-called affirmative action in higher education, a longtime goal of conservatives. view article

We are learning more about the death of a Brandeis Special Needs Instructional Assistant. The Bexar County Medical Examiner said 73-year-old Alfred Jimenez died from a blunt force head injury and they're classifying his death as a homicide. Northside ISD said they can't discuss specifics about student behavior. However, they said the student involved in the incident with Jimenez is not in their assigned classes. The district is working with the student's parents to determine how to meet the student's specialized needs. view article

The three incumbents running for their seats on Texas' highest criminal court were not well known political figures outside of the legal community. That was until they earned the ire of Attorney General Ken Paxton in response to a 2021 opinion over a voter fraud case. view article

An Ohio teacher’s assistant who helps special needs students is suing her school district and former union because the district withheld union dues from her paycheck even after she left the union and formally asked it to cease taking her money.  “Using the coercion of government to take money from a government employee and give it to a union without the employee’s consent is not only egregious, but the Supreme Court has held that it’s unconstitutional,” Jeffrey Schwab, a senior counsel at Liberty Justice Center who represents the Ohio teacher’s assistant, told The Daily Signal in a written statement Monday.  Denise Cogar, an educational associate at Perry High School in Perry Village (35 miles northeast of Cleveland), had been a member of the union, Ohio Association of Public School Employees Local 367, since 2001. Cogar sent a formal notice rescinding her union membership on Nov. 18, 2022. view article

The Marshall Police Department said that they’ve arrested a 23-year-old woman following allegations of an “improper relationship between a teacher and a 16-year-old student” at a Marshall ISD school. The case was reportedly brought to MPD’s attention on Feb. 14 by Marshall ISD Police Department. MISD PD was notified by Superintendent Dr. Richelle Langley after learning about the allegations from MISD School Board President Brad Burris. view article

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A federal judge on Thursday voiced concerns over a Texas law that would give police broad authority to arrest migrants on charges of illegal entry starting in March, saying it would be a "nightmare" if the U.S. became a patchwork of states enforcing different immigration laws. “That turns us from the United States of America into a confederation of states," said U.S. District Judge David Ezra, who did not immediately issue a ruling. “That is the same thing the Civil War said you can’t do.” view article

Last week, Texas Appleseed, Disability Rights Texas, National Center for Youth Law, and Texas Civil Rights Project filed complaints that allege that Bonham ISD (BISD) and Corpus Christi ISD (CCISD) are discriminating against students with disabilities. Complainants also allege that BISD is discriminating against students of color. The heart of the issue facing both districts is that, instead of making a good-faith effort to meet the needs of chronically absent students, CCISD and BISD are referring students with disabilities to truancy court, where they are often ordered to drop out of school. This practice denies students the learning opportunities that they are entitled to under the law. view article

An Austin judge will decide whether Senate Bill 4 will go into effect on March 5. The new law allows police to arrest people suspected of illegally crossing the border.  Lawyers for the Biden administration and Texas will face off Thursday in a federal court in Austin to argue whether a new state law that would allow police to arrest people suspected of crossing the Texas-Mexico border illegally should go into effect next month.  Senate Bill 4, which Gov. Greg Abbott signed in December, is Texas’ latest attempt to try to deter people from crossing the Rio Grande after several years of historic numbers of migrants arriving at the Texas-Mexico border. view article