TEA Investigates 4 Texas Districts Over Walkouts | Student protest image by Canva
The Texas Education Agency has confirmed that it is investigating four school districts over their alleged roles in facilitating student walkouts during class hours.
The TEA confirmed to The Dallas Express that Northside ISD, Austin ISD, Hutto ISD, and Brownsville ISD are currently under review by the agency’s Special Investigations Division.
The investigations will look into “district-level practices and specific incidents related to the alleged assistance of students with walkout-protests and alleged failures to enforce district policies that limit school day interruptions,” according to the agency.
TEA officials confirmed that they will follow their standard investigative process, which includes reviewing evidence and conducting interviews before taking any “appropriate action to determine whether any violations of law occurred.” Should investigators find evidence of educator “misconduct” – specifically related to walkouts during school hours – the incident in question will then be referred to TEA’s Educator Investigations Division for another separate review.
The announcement brings the total number of Texas school districts facing state-level investigations over the walkout protests to at least seven.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, Attorney General Ken Paxton launched investigations earlier this month into North East Independent School District, Dallas ISD, and Manor ISD, and separately demanded records from Austin ISD over reports that district personnel were aware of – and in some cases facilitated – student walkouts that protested against ICE.
As DX previously covered, the TEA also issued statewide enforcement guidelines earlier this month outlining the consequences districts could face for allowing walkouts during class hours. The guidelines require that students who leave campus during instructional hours be marked absent, which could carry significant financial consequences, since Texas public school funding is largely tied to average daily attendance numbers.
Teachers who encourage or assist walkouts may even be referred to the State Board for Educator Certification.
The four districts now under TEA investigation span the Lone Star State. Northside ISD is based in San Antonio; Austin ISD already faces scrutiny from the attorney general’s office; Hutto ISD is a suburban district northeast of Austin; and Brownsville ISD is located along the southern border.
TEA has authority under Texas Education Code Chapter 39 – the statute governing the investigations – to take a range of “corrective actions” against districts found out of compliance or secretly pushing walkouts during class hours. Administrators and teachers who are found to have violated any state laws could face formal sanctions.
TEA was clear that no conclusions have been reached and that the process is ongoing.
The Dallas Express reached out to Northside ISD, Austin ISD, Hutto ISD, and Brownsville ISD for comment, but did not receive a response by publication.