State Rep. Gene Wu says Texas must do more to support public education and address the root causes of youth crime, arguing that underfunded schools and a lack of mental health resources are contributing to problems in the state\u2019s juvenile justice system.<\/p>\n
During a Houston Community Media news briefing focused on challenges facing children and teenagers, Wu said the state\u2019s education system is one of the biggest issues facing young Texans.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would say one of the biggest issues right now, bar none, is our education system,\u201d Wu said.<\/p>\n
Wu said Texas schools are not equipped to serve students who come from troubled homes, experience poverty or struggle with mental health and behavioral issues. He also criticized lawmakers for failing to fully fund public education.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery year we defund our schools more and more,\u201d Wu said.<\/p>\n
According to Wu, lawmakers were told during the 2025 legislative session that Texas public schools faced a $16 billion funding shortfall but only allocated about half that amount. He said the result has been school closures, larger class sizes and increasing pressure on teachers across the state.<\/p>\n
\u201cClassroom sizes are getting bigger and bigger. Teachers are getting more and more frustrated,\u201d Wu said.<\/p>\n
Wu also criticized the state\u2019s emphasis on standardized testing, arguing that schools are financially incentivized to move students through the system rather than ensure they are learning.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe system right now is only geared toward testing,\u201d Wu said. \u201cIt does not actually care whether students learn or not.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wu said the lack of educational resources has also changed how schools respond to student behavior, with law enforcement increasingly becoming involved in situations that were once handled by administrators.<\/p>\n
\u201cBack when I was in school, there were no cops in school,\u201d Wu said. \u201cIf you got into a fight, you went to the principal\u2019s office.\u201d<\/p>\n
Today, Wu said, students are more likely to be arrested for behavior that previously resulted in disciplinary action, creating what he described as a pipeline into the juvenile justice system.<\/p>\n
He argued that placing more police officers on campuses or arming teachers does not address the underlying causes of school violence.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we deal with things like school shootings, our response is not to provide mental health care, our response is not to provide social services,\u201d Wu said. \u201cInstead, what we say is, \u2018Let\u2019s just put cops in every classroom. Let\u2019s give teachers guns.\u2019 Those don\u2019t actually solve anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wu, who represents Texas House District 137 and serves as vice chair of the House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence, said his work on juvenile justice began while serving as a prosecutor in the Harris County District Attorney\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n
He said that experience taught him the importance of addressing why children enter the justice system rather than focusing solely on punishment.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of the problems that we see in society, that we see in the criminal justice system, that we see in delinquent children, are problems that we created,\u201d Wu said. \u201cAnd we put no resources into fixing these problems.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wu said Texas has made progress in juvenile justice reform but warned against returning to a \u201ctough on crime\u201d approach.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we\u2019ve discovered is simply beating kids harder doesn\u2019t actually change bad behavior,\u201d he said. \u201cIt makes kids more violent.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wu said improving education, expanding mental health resources and investing in children before they enter the justice system are essential to reducing youth crime and creating better outcomes for families across Texas.<\/p>\n
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