Happy Wednesday, 

We’ve got a lot to cover this week, but first I wanted to share these quotes with you.

They’re  from my conversation with a political coordinator at the Texas Freedom Network following the State Board of Education’s vote on the new required reading list that includes passages from the Bible, which he called “a  long-term campaign to turn public schools into Sunday schools.”

In light of the SBOE’s recent meetings, you’ll also find a breakdown on what seats are up for election this year below. 

You’ll also find information on a new nationwide survey that asked Americans their thoughts on including the Ten Commandments in classrooms, new private school voucher data, and some of the Texas GOP’s newly laid out party priorities pertaining to public schools in Texas. 

If you missed last week’s edition, read it here.

While the State Board of Education has dominated headlines in Texas, there’s other news you may have missed:

💵According to recent data from the Texas Comptroller’s office, less than 1% of students with disabilities were not awarded the full $30,000 private school voucher amount that was available. The average funding awarded to students with a documented disability was half that, around $16,000, despite the average tuition cost for special education private schools in Texas being over $23,000, according to Private School Review.

🏳️‍⚧️The Texas GOP has released its official party platform, which opposes “all efforts to validate transgender identity and ideology,” including banning transgender teachers. The party is also demanding that the Texas Legislature pass a law “prohibiting the teaching of sex education, sexual health, or sexual choice or identity in any government school in any grade whatsoever.”

Texas isn’t the only state that has passed legislation mandating the display of the Ten Commandments in public schools, and a new Pew Research Center survey shows that many Americans are fine with the infusion of religion into public schools:

👉50% favor displaying the Ten Commandments in classrooms

👉78% of US adults favor allowing students to voluntarily pray in student-led groups

👉57% favor allowing coaches to lead their teams in prayer

👉46% favor allowing teachers to lead their classes in prayer

However, the survey shows that few Americans think it should be mandatory for students to participate in teacher-led school prayer.

I want to hear from you. Do you agree with these survey results and placing the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms?

Throughout July, we’re reading “Sold” by Patricia McCormick. The novel was banned in Nacogdoches ISD in 2025, and was the most challenged book in 2025. 

It follows a young girl from Nepal named Lakshmi who is sold into sexual slavery in India, and is written in short prose poetry and vignettes.

Here are more discussion questions to consider as you make your way through the book:

1. How does McCormick portray the loss of innocence?

2. How does the setting contribute to the feeling of isolation?

3. Do you think the difficult subject matter serves an educational purpose?