News from the South - Texas News Feed
Abbott orders TEA investigate Houston school over pronouns
Gov. Abbott orders TEA probe of Houston school for calling a student by chosen name and pronouns
“Gov. Abbott orders TEA probe of Houston school for calling a student by chosen name and pronouns” was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them — about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.
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Gov. Greg Abbott said he demanded that the state’s education agency investigate a Houston high school whose teachers were accused by a local conservative activist of “transitioning” a student they were calling by the student’s chosen name and pronouns.
In a social media post Saturday, Abbott also called for lawmakers to prohibit the practice at all schools.
“No parent should have to endure this,” Abbott said. “No school should be involved in ‘transitioning’ a child. If this is not already illegal, it will be after this session. I have instructed TEA to investigate this matter.”
Denise Bell, who leads the Moms for Liberty chapter in Harris County, spoke at a school board meeting on behalf of a parent she did not name. The group advocates against school curricula and teachings that include LGBTQ rights.
The mother’s child is a junior at Houston ISD’s Bellaire High School, according to the testimony Bell read. On the first day of freshman year, the student took home an information sheet that asked for students’ pronouns.
“Multiple teachers started calling her by a different name and pronouns. One teacher even went as far as to cross out my daughter’s legal name that she had written on her paper and write her chosen name in red ink,” the woman said in the statement read by Bell. “This occurred without our knowledge and certainly without our consent.”
She added: “This goes against our Christian faith, the advice of her therapist, and quite frankly common sense. We met with her teachers, counselors, and the principal to no avail. HISD is purposely and secretively transitioning” minors.
Spokespeople for Houston ISD, which is under state control, did not immediately respond Monday to a request for comment. Neither did the Texas Education Agency, whose spokespeople told the Houston Chronicle it was “reviewing the matter.”
Moms for Liberty shared on social media a minute-long clip of Bell’s comments, which Abbott reposted — and said it served as “another reason why parents deserve school choice.”
Abbott has said he’s confident the Legislature will pass a school vouchers package — often referred to as school choice — during the current legislative session after multiple failed attempts during the last regular session and four subsequent special sessions in 2023.
This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at https://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/17/texas-greg-abbott-hisd-bellaire-high-school/.
The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.
The post Abbott orders TEA investigate Houston school over pronouns appeared first on feeds.texastribune.org
News from the South - Texas News Feed
TIMELINE: How long did it take Austin Energy to restore power after the May 2025 microburst?
SUMMARY: Following a severe microburst on May 28, 2025, Austin Energy experienced its third-worst outage event, with over 72,500 customers (12.8%) losing power at the peak. Winds reached 85 mph, uprooting trees and damaging power infrastructure. Restoration was complicated by subsequent storms but was fully completed by June 2, about 4 days later. Over 163,000 total outages affected roughly 124,000 customers out of 566,000. The storm damaged 91 poles, 52 transformers, and 32,000 feet of overhead cable. Austin Energy leveraged lessons from past storms, improving incident management, outage communication, and mutual aid coordination, with help from 250 utility crews to restore power efficiently.
The post TIMELINE: How long did it take Austin Energy to restore power after the May 2025 microburst? appeared first on www.kxan.com
News from the South - Texas News Feed
One-on-one with former Texas Gov. Rick Perry
SUMMARY: Former Texas Governor Rick Perry remains active in state and federal policy, notably promoting research on ibogaine, a psychedelic compound believed to aid veterans with PTSD and addiction. Texas recently allocated $50 million to ibogaine clinical studies, championed by Perry and Bryan Hubbard. They also formed Americans for Ibogaine, aiming to expand trials nationwide and reclassify ibogaine for medical use. Perry supports Governor Abbott’s decision to deploy the National Guard to manage protests and commented on the halted Texas Dream Act, attributing its demise to immigration issues under the Biden administration. Perry praised retiring Texas A&M chancellor John Sharp and welcomed incoming chancellor Glenn Hegar.
The post One-on-one with former Texas Gov. Rick Perry appeared first on www.kxan.com
News from the South - Texas News Feed
Officers deploy tear gas, rubber bullets to clear protesters in downtown L.A.
SUMMARY: A peaceful “No Kings” protest in downtown Los Angeles on June 14, 2025, turned tense when law enforcement ordered dispersal and deployed tear gas and flashbangs. Police claimed some protesters threw objects, though no video evidence or witness confirmation has surfaced. The protest coincided with Flag Day, President Trump’s birthday, and opposition to his immigration policies. The “No Kings” group urged non-violence, and their organized activities ended by 6 p.m. Despite confusion during dispersal, over 200,000 protested in L.A. and nearly 5 million nationwide. A citywide 8 p.m. curfew was in effect as tensions escalated between protesters and officers.
The post Officers deploy tear gas, rubber bullets to clear protesters in downtown L.A. appeared first on www.kxan.com
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