Spring break is right around the corner! While schools welcome a much-needed break, they must also be ready to welcome possible new transfer students upon return. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) imposes certain requirements regarding the provision of special education services to students who transfer from one public agency to another. See 34 C.F.R. § 300.323(e)-(g). Within the past year, the Commissioner revised the administrative rules governing how Texas districts must respond when a special education student transfer into their district from another public school district (in-state or out-of-state). The following is a brief overview of those obligations for mid-year transfer students.

While “tangible” property has always been a consideration in school district management, the rise of the importance of “intellectual” property (IP) has introduced a new realm of assets that require thorough and thoughtful safekeeping. From educational material and district branding to the fast-developing sphere of artificial intelligence (AI) and name, image, and likeness (NIL), IP is now a major cornerstone of scholastic and operational success for most school districts.

The Houston-area school district faced accusations of electioneering for its attempts to encourage voting in a tax-rate election in 2023. While the district was cleared of wrongdoing, people involved with Fort Bend ISD at the time could potentially face bribery investigations. view article

When a school district analyzes locations for construction of potential facilities, water supply is often a key component of that evaluation. At times a location does offer easy access to an established and affordable municipal water supplier to whom a district can simply “hook up.” With an existing system, a school district will hope to pay a reasonable rate for water of a quality and quantity sufficient to meet its needs. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. A school district may need to examine obtaining an alternative water supply in order to meet the demand for its project or explore options to supplement its primary supply due to water quality, quantity, or cost concerns.

Throughout her son's life, Carissa Cornelius has been her 10-year-old’s voice. "He has autism and he's non-verbal,” said Cornelius. But there’s never been a time that she needed the persistence or volume used since she said she first saw a video of what law enforcement is calling an assault in his special education classroom at Millsap Elementary School back in February. view article

Millsap ISD Superintendent Mari "Edie" Martin, Special Education Teacher Jennifer Dale and Paraprofessional Paxton Bean have all been arrested on charges connected to a viral video showing an autistic 10-year-old being abused. view article

A 6-month-long investigation into a former Boyd ISD teacher allegedly involved in a relationship with a high school student has resulted in an arrest. Stephanie Lynn McGilvray, 30, of Poolville was arrested Thursday morning and charged with one count of Improper Relationship Between Educator and Student. She was booked into the Parker County Jail, and then was transported to the Wise County Jail by Boyd Police Department officers later that day. view article

The Millsap ISD superintendent and two former faculty members were arrested after a video surfaced showing educators allegedly abusing an autistic child in a classroom. Superintendent Edie Martin, 44-year-old Jennifer Dale and 25-year-old Paxton Kendal Bean were arrested Thursday. Martin and Bean have since bonded out of jail. Dale is currently in the Palo County Jail and being held on a $2,500 bond. view article

A former Valentine ISD employee was sentenced in a federal court in Pecos to 27 months in prison for wire fraud and theft concerning programs receiving federal funds. Below is a press release from the United States Attorney’s Office Western District of Texas: view article

The Bryan Police Department and Bryan Independent School District (Bryan ISD) have confirmed to KBTX that an investigation is underway into a reported assault that occurred on a school bus Monday afternoon. Due to the ages of those involved, authorities have refrained from releasing specific details of the incident. However, the mother of the alleged victim, Teresa Cisneros, has been outspoken on social media, calling for the individuals responsible to face the fullest extent of punishment. view article

Attorney General Ken Paxton sued Coppell school officials for teaching "critical race theory" in response to an edited video by a conservative activist that appears to show a school administrator discussing how to circumvent state education standards. In the video, a person identified as the district's director of curriculum and instruction is seen talking about how Coppell had “gotten around” prohibitions on the use of so-called CRT in state policies and curricula, “by saying, 'we’re not teaching that.'” view article

Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against Coppell ISD accusing administrators of encouraging staff to continue teaching critical race theory (CRT), the Texas Attorney General's office announced Wednesday. According to the Attorney General's Office, a recently published video showed Evan Whitfield, director of curriculum and instruction for Coppell ISD, discussing how the district has maneuvered the change in instruction. view article

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sued leaders of the Coppell Independent School District for allegedly flouting state restrictions on teaching “critical race theory” in public schools, based on an undercover video published by a conservative activist group. In the lawsuit filed last week in Dallas County, Paxton’s office accused Coppell ISD administrators of violating a state law that, among other prescriptions, prohibits schools from teaching that “one race or sex is inherently superior to another” or requiring students to understand the New York Times’ 1619 Project, a Pulitzer Prize-winning report that examined U.S. history from the date when enslaved people first arrived to America. view article

The former Houston Independent School District chief operating officer accused in a multimillion-dollar bribery scheme wrote on a yellow legal pad Wednesday morning in federal court as his attorneys argued with prosecutors about what evidence should be admitted in his upcoming trial. Jury selection for the case against former HISD COO Brian Busby and his alleged co-conspirator, Anthony Hutchinson, is set to begin on Monday. view article

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against Coppell ISD, accusing them of illegally teaching critical race theory (CRT). The Attorney General's Office said the lawsuit was filed after a video was published reportedly showing Coppell ISD's Director of Curriculum and Instruction talking about how the district had "gotten around" state prohibitions against the use of CRT "by saying we're not teaching [CRT]." view article

A 60-year-old Ropes ISD employee was arrested last week after reportedly admitting to sending inappropriate text messages to a 14-year-old girl he was tutoring to play the saxophone. Scott Strobel was booked March 14 into the Lubbock County Detention Center on a count of child grooming. view article

During a Crime Stoppers news conference Tuesday, we learned a 16-year-old Spring Branch Independent School District student was attempting to make explosives last month. Spring Branch ISD Police Chief Larry Baimbridge said on Feb. 27, Spring Branch ISD High School received a tip from Crime Stoppers regarding a student who was attempting to make explosives. Officers immediately located the student, took him out of class and interviewed him. view article

A discussion about Texas' controversial Bible-infused curriculum got so heated Monday night that police removed a woman who flipped off a Fort Bend ISD trustee and called him a fascist. The uproar over whether the Fort Bend ISD should review a sample of the Texas Education Agency's Bluebonnet materials interrupted the meeting in Sugar Land, forcing officers to ask the public to leave so they could escort the woman off the premises. view article

A Foster Middle School student was arrested Tuesday morning after allegedly bringing a weapon to campus. According to the release from Longview ISD, school officials received reports of a photo that showed the student in a school restroom with a gun. They said the photo was linked to a Monday night incident during an after-school activity. view article

The Texas Education Agency’s Educator Investigations Division began reviewing former La Joya ISD Rut Damaris Kazmierczak’s Texas educator certificate Friday after the Progress Times published a story about allegations that she’d inappropriately messaged a former student in 2023. view article

The Ropes Independent School District said an employee was arrested for Child Grooming after being accused of having inappropriate contact with a minor who is not a student at the school. Public records obtained by EverythingLubbock.com showed Scott David Strobel, 60, was arrested by the Wolfforth Police Department on March 15. view article

The Department of Education Office of Civil Rights named the University of North Texas among the universities it is investigating for “race-exclusionary practices” in their graduate programs view article

A Laredo ISD police officer has been arrested on a domestic violence allegation, according to Laredo police. A woman stated that a relative had assaulted her and that she wanted to press charges. view article

Carl Innmon, a fifth-grade teacher at Baranoff Elementary, is facing two new charges that the school's principal says are stemming from AI-generated materials made from photos of students in his own classroom. view article

Adrian Buruata, a former assistant football and baseball coach at Diamond Hill-Jarvis High School, has been charged with child sexual contact and an improper relationship between an educator and a student, according to the Hill County Sheriff's Office. Authorities allege that Buruata engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a 15-year-old student during the 2023-2024 school year. view article

A former officer with the Atlanta Independent School District Police Department pleaded his case at a special Board of Trustee meeting, arguing that he was made into a scapegoat and wrongfully terminated. Hardy Sheppard said he was fired from his position at Atlanta ISD last year following the arrest and conviction of a former coach at the school, Taureaus Maxwell, for indecency with a child. view article

A former Itasca ISD faculty member arrested for an alleged improper relationship between an educator and student. Adrian Buruato, 29, is charged with indecency with a child-sexual contact and improper relationship between an educator and student. view article

Former Itasca ISD Head Baseball Coach Adrian Buruato was arrested on Wednesday, March 12, by the Hill County Sheriff's Office following an investigation into allegations of sexual assault involving a female student, Itasca ISD said. On Monday, March 10, Itasca ISD personnel and the Itasca ISD School Resource Officer (SRO) from the Hill County Sheriff's Office received a complaint from the student. According to Itasca ISD, the alleged assault happened while Buruato was employed by Itasca ISD. view article

A Fort Worth ISD employee was arrested Wednesday for having an improper relationship with a student while working at Itasca ISD as a head baseball coach and junior high history teacher, authorities said. According to a news release from the Hill County Sheriff's Office (HCSO), on Monday, March 10, they received a complaint of an improper relationship between Adrian Buruato, 29, and an Itasca ISD student, who was 15 years old at the time, during the 2023-2024 school year. view article

Abilene ISD joined 200 other school districts in a lawsuit against social media giants such as TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat. They allege that the effects of social media in the classroom are detrimental. According to the US Courts, the lawsuit was first filed by Seattle school districts in 2023, but has since expanded nationwide. Abilene follows fellow Texas school districts in Houston and San Antonio in joining. view article

A roadblock is standing in the way of the Tuloso-Midway school district's plans for a new junior high school — finding the land to build it on. A year and a half ago, Tuloso-Midway Independent School District voters approved a $165 million slate of bond projects. Part of this bond package was a new junior high school. Last month, the school board authorized legal counsel to begin condemnation proceedings to acquire 40 acres on McKinzie Road if the district can't negotiate a sale with landowners. view article

Two North Texas administrators are on leave, and other educators are off the job after video surfaced of adults hitting and swinging at an autistic child in a classroom. The incident happened at Millsap Elementary School in Parker County, west of Fort Worth. The sheriff's office, state education officials and Child Protective Services are now investigating. view article

Abilene ISD officials have decided to join over 200 districts nationwide in a federal lawsuit against media companies, contending they have negatively affected the youth mental health crisis. The AISD School Board met Thursday to recognize student and staff achievements, hear updates on district initiatives and adopt resolutions pertaining to national social media litigation. view article

Victoria ISD has released a statement after a maintenance employee was arrested on multiple child sexual abuse charges Tuesday afternoon. Victoria ISD stated that the district "strictly follows hiring protocols, which include fingerprinting and conducting a criminal background check for every employee prior to hire." view article

A Houston-area school district has partnered with a Texas lawmaker to try to bolster school safety through enhancing communication between law enforcement and school districts. Klein ISD leaders told KHOU 11 they worked with Texas state Rep. Sam Harless to introduce HB 4125 — known as the PROTECT Act (Providing Required Oversight to Educators’ Conduct Transparency). view article