Texas Social Studies Standards: The Billion-Dollar Curriculum Rewrite | 10 AM and 12 PM Press Conference Tomorrow, Monday, June 22, 2026

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 Friends,

Tomorrow begins an important week at the Texas State Board of Education that meets from the 22nd-26th.

There will be two press conferences tomorrow morning. 

The first on is the following at 10 AM sponsored by the Latino Texas Policy Center. The second at 12PM is sponsored by the Texas Freedom Network. TFN will have a horse-drawn funeral procession for the death of religious freedom in Texas. 

I somehow don't have a notice on the second one, but I spoke yesterday with Executive Director Felicia Martin who said that there will be one at the noon hour.

Both press conferences take place at the Barbara Jordan State Office Building | 1601 N. Congress Avenue, Austin, Texas 78711. If you're in mourning regarding the loss of religious freedom, wear black.

All should care deeply about this as what gets decided this week will be etched in stone for the next 10 years. Read the LTPC's full policy analysis HERE. 

LATINO TEXAS POLICY CENTER 

MEDIA KIT Texas State Board of Education Social Studies TEKS Vote June 26, 2026

MEDIA CONTACT 

Natalie A. Sanchez-Lopez, M.P.P. Executive Director & CEO Latino Texas Policy Center Phone: 361-510-1365 Email: natalie@latinotexaspolicycenter.com Website: www.latinotexaspolicycenter.com

MEDIA ADVISORY 

What: Press Conference on the Hidden Financial Costs of the Proposed Texas Social Studies TEKS Revisions 

When: Monday, June 22, 2026 @ 10AM 

Where: Barbara Jordan State Office Building | 1601 N. Congress Avenue, Austin, Texas 78711 

Who Will Speak: 

• Natalie Sánchez-Lopez, Executive Director & CEO, Latino Texas Policy Center • Gustavo Reveles, Texas State Board of Education, District 1 • Marisa Perez-Diaz, Texas State Board of Education, District 3 • Zeph Capo, President, Texas AFT • Julia Brookins, American Historical Association 

Why: The State Board of Education is scheduled to take a final vote on June 26, 2026 regarding proposed K–12 Social Studies TEKS revisions. A new independent policy analysis commissioned by the Latino Texas Policy Center estimates implementation costs ranging from $811 million to more than $1.65 billion statewide. 

STORY AT-A-GLANCE 

Headline: New Analysis Finds Proposed Texas Social Studies Standards Could Cost Between $811 Million and $1.65 Billion 

Key News Peg: 

The Texas Education Agency's fiscal note states the proposed TEKS revisions will result in "no additional costs to the state." A new independent analysis finds substantial implementation costs would instead be borne by local school districts, taxpayers, educators, museums, and cultural institutions. 

Why This Matters: 

The proposed standards represent the most significant restructuring of Texas social studies curriculum in more than a decade. 

Major proposed changes include: 

• Moving Texas History from 4th grade to 8th grade • Replacing portions of existing World Cultures content • Introducing a new chronological K–8 history sequence • Integrating Biblical content throughout elementary grades • Requiring new instructional materials statewide 

POLICY ANALYSIS - EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 

The State Board of Education (SBOE) is undertaking a sweeping overhaul of social studies Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for all grades K–12. What will be the costs from the proposed changes? Latinos and allies rightly identify the cost as barriers to academic success and future adult opportunities – resulting from reductions in historical integrity and inclusivity (their contributions), and overall education quality. 

The Texas Education Agency (TEA), which claims no additional financial costs to the state, does not account for the full cascade of downstream implementation costs. Millions of unfunded education costs that will affect school districts, teacher preparation and historic sites and cultural institutions. 

Read full policy analysis HERE 

KEY FINDINGS 

Estimated Statewide Costs 

Instructional Materials: $314M–$479M 

District Curriculum Development: $135M–$430M 

Teacher Retraining: $73M–$154M 

Projected Social Studies $85M–$215M 

Bluebonnet Development: 

STAAR Assessment Redesign: $14M–$36M 

Historic Sites and Museums: $14M–$44M 

Teacher Attrition and Replacement: $38M–$77M 

Potential Litigation: $5M–$50M+ 

TOTAL ESTIMATED COST: $811 Million–$1.65 Billion+ 

TOP FIVE REPORTER ANGLES 

1. The Hidden Cost Story: TEA says implementation costs are effectively zero. Independent researchers estimate costs exceeding $1 billion. 

2. Texas History Leaves Elementary School:Texas History moves from 4th grade through 8th grade, potentially affecting student learning and cultural identity formation. 

3. Impact on Museums and Historic Sites: Organizations such as The Alamo and LBJ Library anticipate reduced visitation and costly program redesigns. 

4. Teacher Readiness: Approximately 77,000 social studies teachers would be expected to implement a framework for which no existing preparation pipeline currently exists. 

5. Church-State Questions: The integration of Biblical content raises constitutional questions that legal scholars warn could generate future litigation 

FAST FACTS 

★ 77,000 Texas social studies teachers affected 

★ More than 6.3 million students impacted 

★ 1,020 Texas school districts affected 

★ More than $103 million already spent on Bluebonnet Learning development 

★ More than 595 districts have adopted portions of Bluebonnet Learning 

★ Final SBOE adoption vote scheduled for June 26, 2026 

SUGGESTED INTERVIEW SOURCES 

Economic Impact on Texas & Latino Community Perspective 

Natalie Sanchez-Lopez Executive Director & CEO of the Latino Texas Policy Center 

Email: natalie@latinotexaspolicycenter.com | Ph. (361) 510-1365 

Policy and Fiscal Analysis: 

Christopher Carmona, PhD, Author of:The Hidden Financial Education Cost: Proposed Texas Social Studies TEKS Revisions 

Email: natalie@latinotexaspolicycenter.com | Ph. (956) 854-1717 

State Board of Education Perspectives 

Gustavo Reveles, Texas SBOE District 1 

Email: gustavo.reveles@sboe.texas.gov | Ph. (915) 256-3273 

Marisa Perez-Diaz, Texas SBOE District 3 

Email: marisa.perez@sboe.texas.gov | Ph. (512) 422-9019 

Teacher and Classroom Impact 

Zeph Capo, President, Texas American Federation of Teachers (Texas AFT) 

Email: zcapo@texasaft.org | Ph. (713) 670-4348 

Historical and Academic Analysis & Parent Perspective 

Julia Brookins, American Historical Association 

Email: jbrookins@historians.org | Ph. (773) 272-5209 

QUOTABLES 

"Before Texas commits to an untested curriculum restructuring, taxpayers deserve a complete and independent fiscal analysis." ~ Natalie Sanchez-Lopez 

"The state is telling Texans this overhaul is free. It is not. It simply moves the bill onto school districts, teachers, museums, and taxpayers." ~ Christopher Carmona, PhD 

KEY DATES 

June 22, 2026 SBOE Committee Hearing - Public Testimony 

June 22, 2026 @ 10:00 a.m. 

LTPC Press Conference @ Barbara Jordan Building 

June 26, 2026 State Board of Education - Final Adoption Vote 

ABOUT THE LATINO TEXAS POLICY CENTER 

The Latino Texas Policy Center is an independent, nonpartisan statewide policy organization dedicated to increasing Latino policymaking power through research, leadership development, coalition-building, and evidence-based policy solutions. LTPC focuses on education, economic mobility, civic participation, and long-term community wellbeing. 

www.latinotexaspolicycenter.com 

Read full policy analysis HERE 

Texas Freedom Network (TFN) Statement on Ten Commandments Appellate Ruling, April 22, 2026

Friends:

Source: San.com

The 9–8 ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit allowing Texas to mandate the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms should set off alarm bells across the country (Nigrelli, 2026; TFN Press Release, 2026). 

This is not about heritage. It is not about morality. It is about power. As Texas Freedom Network President Felicia Martin makes clear, religious freedom means the state does not get to decide which beliefs are elevated and displayed for all children. Yet that is precisely what this ruling permits—by a single vote. One vote to move the state from protector of religious liberty to arbiter of religious truth. That is not neutrality. That is state-sanctioned imposition.

And let’s be clear: this is not an isolated decision. It is part of a coordinated reordering of public education in Texas—one that is narrowing what can be taught, who gets to decide, and now, what must be believed. From dismantling DEI to restructuring university governance to inserting religious doctrine into K–12 classrooms, the pattern is unmistakable. 

Public schools are being transformed from spaces of inquiry and pluralism into instruments of ideological control. The Ten Commandments on the wall are not the beginning of this story—they are the latest move in a much larger project. The question now is whether we recognize it for what it is, and whether we are willing to confront it before the line between education and indoctrination disappears altogether.

And this is all the more reason to attend our meeting this evening with the Democrat members of the Texas State Board of Education per my earlier post this morning.

-Angela Valenzuela, Ph.D.

Reference

Nigrelli, C. (2026, April 22). Court rules Texas can require Ten Commandments in classrooms. San Antonio Express-News. https://san.com/cc/court-rules-texas-can-require-ten-commandments-in-classrooms/

TFN Statement on Ten Commandments Appellate Ruling

Spokespeople available in Spanish and English for additional comment or interview at request



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 22, 2026

CONTACT: Andrew Freeman, andrew@tfn.org, 512-746-8404

AUSTIN, Texas – The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 9-8 Tuesday that Texas can require public schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms.

Several families and faith leaders sued school districts to block the law from taking effect after Senate Bill 10 was passed by the Texas Legislature last summer.

Texas Freedom Network President and Executive Director Felicia Martin (she/her) issued the following response:

“Religious freedom means the government does not get to decide which faith belongs on a classroom wall. This ruling gets that wrong, and it does so by just one vote. One vote should not be enough to take that freedom away from Texas families. At Texas Freedom Network, we will continue our support of the diverse families and faith leaders challenging this decision and any further legal action to bring it before the Supreme Court.”

###

The Texas Freedom Network (tfn.org) is a grassroots organization of religious and community leaders and young Texans building an informed and effective movement for equality and social justice.

"Freedom to Learn" Rally at the Texas State Capitol—Austin, Texas, Wed., May 3, 2023 at 2:00PM

This April, the Texas Senate passed three anti-higher ed bills (SB16-a ban on so-called "CRT" in higher ed, SB17-a ban on DEI programs in higher ed, and SB18-a bill that attempts to abolish tenure). These bills are now going to the Texas House.

Texas faculty, working as private citizens, have organized a Freedom to Learn Texas Day of Action on May 3rd--both in Austin and from wherever people are--to stand up for the freedom to learn.

The Day of Action has been organized by the Texas Faculty Coalition in partnership with the UT-Austin chapter of the American Association of University Professors-American Federation of Teachers and Black Brown Dialogues On Policy.

Coalition for Liberated Ethnic Studies, The African American Policy Forum, MAS for Texas Schools, Librotraficante, Texas AFT, Texas Freedom Network, Texas Legislative Education Equity Coalition.

Click on the link below to learn how you can join these efforts:

https://docs.google.com/.../1MsCaBPD7k9kWQfOJtwZc8iQ.../edit

And see you on May 3rd!

-Angela Valenzuela

BIG News! Approval of African American Studies Course Is a Big Step Forward for Texas

It's so cool and encouraging to know that even in this time of quarantine, Texas is making huge progress. Falling on the heels of the passage of Mexican American Studies covered amply in this blog, this victory before the State Board of Education continues to be generative of broader efforts toward curricular inclusion in state curriculum.  Our hopes are that Native America Studies will be the next out of the gate for teaching in our states public schools.  Asian American Studies, too. 

Hats off to all who put so much work into this!

-Angela Valenzuela

Approval of African American Studies Course Is a Big Step Forward for Texas

April 17, 2020 by TFN

Press Releases SHARE

African American Studies Joins Mexican American Studies as Elective Courses for the State’s Public Schools

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 17, 2020

Texas Freedom Network President Kathy Miller today celebrated the State Board of Education’s final approval of a new elective course in African American Studies for Texas public schools:

“Today’s vote is a big step toward ensuring that Texas students learn more about the contributions and experiences of African Americans in our nation’s history. Ethnic studies courses are good for all students, not just students of color. They dispel myths, correct misinformation and bridge divisions, helping students from all backgrounds build connections with each other and the past. But these important elective courses aren’t a substitute for inclusive core courses, from history to language arts, that all students take. The state board must make sure that future revisions of curriculum standards for those core courses do a better job addressing the contributions and experiences of all people of color in our nation’s history and rich cultural mosaic.”

Today’s vote ended a formal approval process for African American Studies that began less than a year ago. The board adopted a Mexican American Studies course in 2018, four years after scholars and other advocates first asked the board to act. In finally voting for the Mexican American Studies course in 2018, the board opened the door to the creation of other ethnic studies classes that districts could choose to offer as elective courses for high school students.

###

Texas Freedom Network is a grassroots organization of religious and community leaders who support equality, social justice and public education.

Here is KUT's Claire McInerny reports on Ethnic Studies in AISD, specifically, the teaching of slavery.  This is Part 2 of a 2-part report.

Some of us are working on setting things straight.  Dan Quinn of the Texas Freedom Network is among them and is quoted as saying:

“For generations, Southern kids have been taught, especially in Texas, that the Civil War was fought over some noble cause like states’ rights,” he said. “Well, no, the reason the Civil War was fought was because Southern states wanted to defend the institution of slavery.”

Locally, Jessica Jolliffe, social studies supervisor for AISD is our hero!

-Angela

Education Advocates Want 'Bad History' Removed From State Standards On Civil War

By Claire McInerny •

A monument to Confederate soldiers on the grounds of the Texas Capitol.

Gabriel C. Pérez

 Part 2 of a two-part series. 
When the State Board of Education passed new social studies standards in 2010, there was an outcry from critics who said they prioritized conservative views over historical facts. As the board edits the standards this year, some see an opportunity to correct these inaccuracies.

Listen

Listening...

4:57

KUT's Claire McInerny reports

The Texas Freedom Network advocates for improvements to public school curriculum and standards. Spokesman Dan Quinn says even minor changes to the standards could dramatically change how students learn about slavery.
“For generations, Southern kids have been taught, especially in Texas, that the Civil War was fought over some noble cause like states’ rights,” he said. “Well, no, the reason the Civil War was fought was because Southern states wanted to defend the institution of slavery.”
The current standards say a student should be able to "explain the causes of the Civil War, including sectionalism, states' rights, and slavery."
Quinn says everything other than slavery should be thrown out.

Dan Quinn, a spokesman for Texas Freedom Network, says students should be taught that the Civil War was fought over slavery and not states' rights.

Credit Gabriel C. Pérez / KUT

“It’s a good opportunity for the board to go in and at least remove the bad history,” he said. “Even if they can’t remove all the problems, they can at least take the bad history out and make sure that what students are learning in their classrooms is based on real facts.”
Another standard Quinn wants tweaked: "The student understands the importance of effective leadership in a constitutional republic."
It goes on to list certain people who, according to the standard, made significant political and social contributions to America, including Susan B. Anthony, Frederick Douglass and Stonewall Jackson.
Quinn wants Jackson, a top Confederate general, off the list.
“It’s just bizarre to suggest someone who took up arms against his own government is to be modeled as an effective leader in a constitutional republic,” he said.

Competition For Classroom Time

Jessica Jolliffe, the social studies supervisor for the Austin Independent School District, says the broadness of standards makes teaching slavery tough.
“I definitely think the standards could be reworked or revised to provide more specificity in certain areas,” she said.
Ideally, Jolliffe said, educators should teach what daily life was like for slaves, but that information is not always handy.
“Teachers have to really go out and seek out that information on their own. ... In the textbook, it's very additive: It's an insert in the textbook; it’s one little sidebar story," she said. "But it’s not something that students can really read about and be invested in.”
Jolliffe said she also doesn’t like how slavery gets presented as a brief point on the timeline of American history.
“Instead of learning in September or October that slaves get brought over, and then in the spring, ‘Oh, and by the way we’re having the Civil War and some of it involves slaves,’” Jolliffe said. “We’ve tried to be more intentional about that.”
She’s been adding more literature to classrooms about slave experiences. But teachers have only so much time to focus on these stories.
In Texas schools, the Civil War is taught mainly in eighth grade. Students also have to take a state assessment in history that year. If teachers spend extra time on the realities of slavery, it could take time away from other lessons that are on the test.
“It also [creates] some anxiety on the part of the teacher to deviate from that state curriculum,” Jolliffe said.
The state board's first work group met earlier this month to discuss potential changes. It can't add anything new to the standards, but it can remove language. The board won’t take an official vote on these standards until later this year.

Proposed Mexican-American studies textbook decried as ‘racist’ scrapped

Fait accompli.  Improperly titled, "Mexican American Heritage" textbook just got doomed to the dustbin of history.  The scholars' report can be accessed here. 

I'll repeat what I said in last Tuesday's November 16, 2016 post:

Now let's shift our focus on the Texas State Legislature and get an ethnic studies bill passed there. 

Organizing, coalitions, press conferences, rallys, research, petitions, hard work (peer review), testifying, and being a collective voice and knowing your stuff matters, my friends.

 Great job, everybody!  May all have a happy and blessed Thanksgiving.

Angela Valenzuela

Proposed Mexican-American studies textbook decried as ‘racist’ scrapped

By Julie Chang - American-Statesman Staff



Posted: 6:36 p.m. Friday, Nov. 18, 2016

---

Highlights

The State Board of Education unanimously voted to reject “Mexican American Heritage.”

The board also approved reopening bids for ethnic studies books next year.

A Mexican-American studies textbook proposed for Texas public high schools has been dumped.
The State Board of Education voted unanimously on Friday to exclude “Mexican American Heritage” — a textbook that critics have for months said contained racist passages and factual errors — from a list of recommended textbooks.
“I am gratified that the board members were able to put aside differences about their views of the book and speak in favor of sound structural materials and the well-being of children in public schools,” said Emilio Zamora, a University of Texas history professor who served on a committee appointed by board member Ruben Cortez, D-Brownsville, that reviewed the book.
READ: Does a new Texas textbook whitewash Mexican-American history?
The board gave a preliminary vote on Wednesday to scrap the book with the board’s Vice Chairman Thomas Ratliff, R-Mount Pleasant, declaring that the move wasn’t meant to censor the authors.

Dr. Emilio Zamora holding report of errors by ad hoc committee reporting to SBOE Member Ruben Cortez.  University of Texas history professor Emilio Zamora holds material that was corrected from a proposed Mexican-American Heritage textbook. He and other scholars and activists said the corrections didn’t address all of the concerns about the book. The State Board of Education rejected the book on Friday.

 

 Ralph Barrera

 

Cynthia Dunbar — a former Republican board member who is now head of Momentum Instruction, which published the textbook — said earlier this week that the board would invite a lawsuit if it rejects the book.
She has denied any racist intent with the book and promised that she would address all errors if it were adopted.
She didn’t respond to a request for comment Friday.
The textbook has generated significant controversy since the Texas Education Agency released it online for public review in May.
Among the problems with the book, according to critics, were depictions of early Mexican-American activists as threats to American democracy. The textbook also came under fire for omitting contributions of Mexican-American women through history and suggesting that Mexican-Americans are lazy.
The book’s authors submitted 20 pages of corrections to the Texas Education Agency, including eliminating the reference to the “stereotype of Mexicans working idly,” but Zamora said the authors didn’t significantly address other major concerns that critics had.
One section of the book initially said that communism caused natural disasters. After this error was identified, authors changed the sentence to say communism “left in its wake famine, natural disaster and civil war.”
“Mexican American Heritage” was the only textbook proposed for any ethnic studies subject for the 2017-18 school year.
The board on Friday approved opening bids next year for additional textbooks in Mexican-American studies as well as in other ethnic area studies. The books would go into classrooms in the 2018-19 school year.

@TFN
#MexicanAmericanStudies

#MASforTexas

#MASTejas

#LibroTraficante 
 @NACCSTejasFoco