Texas American Federation of Teachers
08/24/2025 | News release | Archived content
Aug. 22, 2025: The Ten Commandments
|
|
Friday, August 22, 2025 |
|
The Ten Commandments |
|
There is never a back-to-school season without chaos, at least not lately. But this year, the number of policy changes and overall uncertainty that educators, parents, students, and districts are contending with is off the charts. One source of that uncertainty hasnew developments. This week, a federal judge in San Antonio halted the implementation of Senate Bill 10, the Ten Commandments law, in some Texas school districts in response to a lawsuit brought by Texas parents and ACLU Texas. Eleven school districts named in the suit are blocked from implementing the required posting of the Ten Commandments in classrooms. But as a reminder, no district is required toaccept donated posters or display them until Sept. 1. As Texas AFT President Zeph Capo said in his statement on the ruling, "This law is plainly unconstitutional, just like it was when they tried it in Louisiana. All lawmakers have accomplishedhere is mass confusion for schools and teachers right at the start of the school year." |
|
In this week's Hotline:
|
|
|
|
- Texas Legislature |
89th Legislature in Review: Your Right to Democratic Representation |
|
|
Our 2022 Texas Needs Teachersreport highlighted a deep concern among Texas educators about the lack of teacher input into state-level policies such as testing, school funding, licensure (renewal), and evaluation. Additionally, educators have expressed how their voice on campus has been diminished even though there are state laws requiring teacher input on local policies. That'swhy the right to democratic (little "d") representation was one of 10 essential rights our members included in our Educator's Bill of Rights for this legislative session. |
|
Read the Full Story |
|
|
|
- Texas Legislature |
Texas Special Session, Week 5 Recap |
|
TheTexas House this week approved a mid-decade redistricting planthat could significantly reshape the state's congressional delegation.On Aug. 20, lawmakers passed House Bill 4 in an 88-52 vote, sending the measure to the Senate for final consideration this afternoon, though Houston SenatorCarol Alvarado indicated she intends to filibuster HB 4. Watch the Senate floordebate here. |
|
|
The controversialproposal would reconfigure several battleground districts across Texas, pairing fast-growing suburbs with rural counties and linking communities with little overlap in media or economic ties. Republican leaders say the map reflects recent voting trends and increases the number of Hispanic-majority districts. Democrats and civil-rights groups argue it is designed to secure as many as five additionalRepublican seats in the U.S. House by "cracking and packing"communities of color in metro areas like Houston and Dallas. |
|
Read the Full Story |
|
|
|
-Accountability |
Texas A-F Ratings Drop (Again), Raising Stakes for Public Schools |
|
The Texas Education Agency dropped not one, but two years of A-F accountability ratings last week, marking the third release in just one calendar year. The results are based on STAAR exams now partly scored by artificial intelligence and under new, controversial standards rolled out by Commissioner Mike Morath. Texas AFT has long opposed this arbitrary system, which puts undue stress on students, penalizes teachers, and punishes schools instead of helping them grow. |
|
Read the Full Story |
|
|
|
-Higher Education |
Federal Judge Strikes Down 'DEI' Ban in Schools, Universities |
|
Late last week, a U.S. district judge in Maryland ruled in favor of AFT and a coalition of associations, educators, and school districts, declaring that the Trump Administration's efforts to eliminatediversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs at schools, colleges, and universities is unconstitutional. "Here, the government decided to put its thumb on the scale to chill teachers' duty to create safe and welcoming classrooms where critical thinking is valued and history is presented in an open and honest way," said AFT President Randi Weingarten in a statement celebrating the ruling. |
|
Read the Full Story |
|
|
|
-Event |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Local leaders and members celebrating Labor Day in 2024 from Northeast Houston AFT, Spring AFT, Cy-Fair AFT, Houston Federation of Teachers, Socorro AFT, and Northside AFT. |
|
Labor Day / Workers' Day of Action - Find an Event Near You In just over a week, union members, their families, and allies across the country will be gathering to celebrate the power we have when we come together and to build energy for the work that is before us. Find a Labor Day 2025 event near you: https://go.aft.org/labordayaction Learn more about the national day of action: WorkersLaborDay.org We hope to see you at one of the events! |
|
|
Recommended Reading |
|
Education news from around the state and nation that's worth your time. |
|
Trump vowed to end "wasteful" federal spending. Beloved Texas school programs got caught in the middle.Sweeping and sudden funding changes this year put two revered after-school programs for low-income Texans and a rural teacher training initiative at risk of closure. (The Texas Tribune, Aug. 14) HISD cut minimum requirementto meet with unions. Houston ISD scrapped language requiring state-appointed Superintendent Mike Miles to meet with unions to receive feedback at least four times per year, instead giving the superintendent discretion on the frequency of meetings. (Houston Chronicle, Aug. 15) College students in limbo as nonprofits urge judge to reinstate Texas Dream Act. With college tuition payment deadlines only days away for the fall semester, lawyers seekingto restore enforcement of the Texas Dream Act are again asking a district judge to let them contest the ruling that overturned the law. (Austin American-Statesman, Aug. 12)
Women could be most affected by Trump's penalties for overdue student loans. The move by the Trump administration is set to begin May 5, and borrowers with delinquent payments could have their wages garnished as early as the summer. (The 19th, April 23)
The Lege's 'Big Government Intrusion' into University Academics. Expanding on last session's anti-DEI campus crackdown, some Republicans in the Legislature are now going after gender and ethnic studies programs and faculty independence. (Texas Observer, April 24)
The Shocking Billionaire Plot to Dismantle Public Education. Texas is on the verge of passing a law that could defundpublic education. Vouchers send public taxpayer dollars to private schools. It could cost taxpayers $10 billionby 2030. And it could destroy Friday Night Lights. (More Perfect Union, April 22)
This Education Department Official Lost His Job. Here's What He Says Is at Risk. Fewer teachers. Incomplete data. Delays in addressing problems and getting financial aid information. Those are just some of the impacts Jason Cottrell, who worked as a data collector at the Department of Education for nine and a half years before being laid off along with more than a thousand other agency employees, warns the Trump Administration's massive cuts to the department's funding and workforce could have on the country's education system. (Time, July 18)
This Education Department Official Lost His Job. Here's What He Says Is at Risk. Fewer teachers. Incomplete data. Delays in addressing problems and getting financial aid information. Those are just some of the impacts Jason Cottrell, who worked as a data collector at the Department of Education for nine and a half years before being laid off along with more than a thousand other agency employees, warns the Trump Administration's massive cuts to the department's funding and workforce could have on the country's education system. (Time, July 18)
|
|
Texas American Federation of Teachers published this content on August 24, 2025, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on August 29, 2025 at 23:07 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]