Texas Education Agency Finds Complaints of Antisemitism in Plano ISD ‘Unsubstantiated’

Plano ISD has avoided sanctions from the Texas Education Agency after state investigators concluded the district did not violate civil rights laws or state education statutes in connection with a series of antisemitism complaints—even as the report documents multiple antisemitic incidents and policy violations that required corrective action.

In a 42‑page report, TEA’s Special Investigations Division found allegations that the Plano independent School District’s board failed to oversee the district and allowed systemic noncompliance with state and federal law were “unsubstantiated.” 

Investigators said the evidence did not support claims that the district violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act or key provisions of the Texas Education Code related to curriculum, student conduct, bullying, attendance, or religious‑holiday accommodations.

Between May and October 2025, TEA received multiple complaints from current and former Plano ISD parents and a former trustee alleging antisemitic incidents, including classroom content, comments by teachers, student walkouts, bullying, and scheduling events on Jewish holy days. 

Those complaints included claims of “pro‑Hamas” walkouts, student harassment, such as calls for Jewish students to “go to the gas chambers” and “go die in Israel,” as well as concerns that some staff minimized or mishandled reports of antisemitism.

Investigators reviewed district policies, emails, lesson materials, and conducted 39 interviews with administrators, teachers, trustees, parents, and community members. 

They found several instances in which teachers used supplemental materials that inaccurately depicted Israel or referred to “Palestine” in ways parents challenged—such as a Jasper High School resource labeling land in the Mesopotamian era as “Palestine” and a Clark High School quiz slide describing Palestinians as a “group who wants to gain back the country they lost to Israel.” 

In at least three cases, TEA found local policy violations in how those materials were selected or approved, but noted the district removed or corrected the content, counseled staff, and, in one case, documented discipline in the teacher’s personnel file. Because Plano ISD had an established curriculum‑selection process and acted to correct violations, TEA concluded the incidents did not amount to a “systemic failure” to comply with curriculum requirements.

The report also examines antisemitic bullying cases at Plano West and other campuses, including students sending a swastika with the message “ur country is dying p**** go save it,” yelling slurs like “fat Jew” and “f**ing Jew,” and telling a Jewish student “I genuinely hope you die in Israel.” In another incident, a Jewish student reported hearing “Free Palestine, f** Israel” chanted at school. 

TEA found that in the main cases it reviewed—labeled Incidents A, B, C, and D—campus administrators opened investigations, notified parents, used stay‑away agreements, adjusted schedules, and in one case issued a day of in‑school suspension for “harassment due to victim’s religion.” 

In a shared agriculture barn incident, the agency noted an assistant principal initially failed to follow required bullying procedures; central office staff later completed a formal investigation, and the administrator was retrained. 

TEA also faulted the district for inconsistent documentation that left some parents frustrated with vague communication, but said Plano ISD has since added staff training and improved documentation practices.

On student walkouts, TEA sided with the district’s handling of 2023 demonstrations in which students chanted, “Free, Free Palestine,” saying campuses followed a district walkout protocol that bars staff from participating and requires demonstrations not to substantially disrupt school operations. At Plano East, students who missed class time for a walkout were marked “absent on campus,” while McMillen’s event fell during an advisory period, making attendance impact harder to track. 

The agency also reviewed complaints about tests scheduled on Rosh Hashanah and a choir concert set for Yom Kippur and noted those events were rescheduled after parents raised concerns, with no evidence Jewish holidays were treated differently than other religious observances.

Under the legal standard TEA applied, Plano ISD could only be found in violation of Title VI if the district intentionally discriminated against Jewish students or responded to antisemitic harassment with “deliberate indifference”—essentially remaining “idle” in the face of severe, pervasive harassment that denied students access to education. 

The report says district responses—including investigations, interim safety measures, discipline in at least one case, and information given to parents on filing grievances or complaints with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights—were not “clearly unreasonable in light of the known circumstances.”

The report also notes that, since the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, Plano ISD has revised its student code of conduct and employee handbook, updated instructional and discussion materials, reviewed curriculum, restricted “antisemitic or divisive clothing,” provided training on Title VI and bullying, and met with Jewish community leaders and families. Because TEA found no systemic legal violations and no Title VI breach, the agency concluded the allegation that the Plano ISD board of trustees failed to oversee district management is “unsubstantiated” and formally closed the investigation.

One Plano parent, who has tracked incidents across multiple campuses, wrote that the report “read like a document written to defend the district, not to protect students,” pointing in particular to a case in which a Shepton High School student was allowed to skip class rather than sit through lessons on the Arab‑Israeli conflict while the lesson itself remained in place. 

The TEA report notes that “the student would be completing a separate assignment and would not be attending the relevant classroom days” and that a non‑approved film was removed, but still concludes there was no systemic curriculum violation—an outcome Benji Gershon views as Plano “removing Jewish kids from the room” instead of confronting biased content or classroom dynamics.

A born and bred Texan, Sydnie serves as the Managing Editor for Texas Scorecard. She graduated from Patrick Henry College with a B.A. in Government and is utilizing her research and writing skills to spread truth to Texans.