02/14/2025

• Texas votes to allow Bible-based curriculum

The Texas State Board of Education has voted to allow Bible-infused curriculum in elementary schools.

Schools districts that choose to adopt the new curriculum are expected to begin using it at the start of the 2025-26 school year. This vote allows schools in Texas to begin using the material in kindergarten through fifth grade. Schools are not required to use the curriculum, but those who do will receive extra funding from the state. Texas will be the first state to introduce Bible lessons in public school curriculums.

“In my view, the biblical stories are on the education side and are establishing cultural literacy,” Houston Republican Will Hickman said. “And there’s religious concepts like the Good Samaritan and the Golden Rule and Moses that all students should be exposed to.”

The curriculum would be for students 1-5 grades. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick celebrated the vote and a pledged legislative vote next year to follow Louisiana’s lead in requiring schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms.

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