4.13.26
“TX SBOE Decides Against Muslim Indoctrination”
From Donna Garner
[COMMENTS FROM DONNA GARNER: The Texas State Board of Education (SBOE) members met on April 7-10, 2026.
The SBOE is in the middle of rewriting the K-12 Social Studies Curriculum Standards called the TEKS.
On 4.10.26, the Board voted on the First Reading of the Social Studies TEKS.
The vote on the final adoption [Second Reading] of the new Social Studies TEKS will occur at the June 22-26, 2026, Board meeting.
History will be taught chronologically and will put more focus on Texas and U. S. History with less emphasis on World History and Cultures.
Civics will be integrated into the Social Studies TEKS.
The SBOE members also approved [First Reading] the new English/Language Arts/Reading TEKS in which there will be a list of K-12 classic literature, Texas History, and passages from the Bible. Students are to be taught the entire piece of literature – not just excerpts from it.]
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4.10.26 – Texas Scorecard
“Texas Congressmen Urge State Board of Education To Reject Islamic Influence”
By Addie Hoveland
Excerpts from this article:
Ten members of Texas’ congressional delegation are urging the State Board of Education to resist the efforts of Islamic organizations attempting to influence the revision of state social studies guidelines in a way that “would diminish American and Texas history.”
U.S. Rep. Brandon Gill (R–Flower Mound) led by means of a letter sent to the education board, which alleges that these Islamification efforts are being spearheaded by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).
CAIR has been designated a foreign terrorist organization by Gov. Greg Abbott.
The letter cites efforts [by Muslims] to include provisions that would teach Texas students that Islam had an influence on “our founding, culture, and way of life.”
One example included the claim that the Alamo is an Islamic building.
Gill wrote that such claims are meant to introduce “sensationalized or false history” into school curriculum and that it is not the board’s responsibility to “accommodate flagrant lies or cultivate spurious claims.”
Co-signers of Gill’s letter include, U.S. Reps. Chip Roy (R–Austin), Wesley Hunt (R–Houston), Michael Cloud (R–Victoria), Nathanial Moran (R–Tyler), Ronny Jackson (R–Amarillo), Lance Gooden (R–Sunnyvale), Brian Babin (R–Woodville), Keith Self (R–McKinney), and Pat Fallon (R–Frisco).
“The SBOE educational standards must reflect truth and accuracy- for without truth what is the purpose of education?” Gill wrote.
“The fact is that Texas was neither founded upon nor influenced by Islamic principles.”
“Islam did NOT play a role in the founding or development of Texas, and to say so would be an outright lie.”
Gill further urged the board to stand firm and fulfill its duty of protecting American history and not allow it to be “perverted by radical activists.”
“I welcome the opportunity to work with you to ensure Texas’ classrooms are protected from the influence of radical, pro-Islamic, terrorist designated activists,” he continued…
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4.9.26 – “In Texas, a State Hearing on Social Studies Becomes a Clash of Religions” – The Washington Post
By Molly Hennessy-Fiske
Excerpts from this article:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2026/04/09/texas-muslims-terrorism-education/
AUSTIN — Shaimaa Zayan, in beige headscarf and floor-length skirt, walked swiftly toward the microphone at the front of the packed meeting room, passing people wearing buttons with a red slash through the word “sharia.”
Zayan, 42, a former Texas teacher who works for the local chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights group, had come on Tuesday to the state’s board of education hearing to talk about proposed changes to the state’s social studies curriculum that she thought unfairly portrayed Muslims.
[CAIR has been designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the United Arab Emirates and also by the governors of Texas and Florida.]
But before she could speak, board member Brandon Hall, a Baptist pastor from rural North Texas, objected.
“CAIR has been designated a terrorist organization by the state of Florida, by the United Arab Emirates [UAE] and by the state of Texas, by a proclamation from Governor Abbott,” Hall said.
“Will you have a designated foreign terrorist organization testify at the State Board of Education?”
Board Chair Aaron Kinsey…was quick to respond: “As covered in previous meetings, the testifier still has First Amendment rights, and I will take the testimony at this time.”
[All of the 100 testifiers had 2 minutes to present their comments.]
That’s when Hall and board member Julie Pickren … walked out.
…A combination of a high-profile election year, the war against Iran, and a deadly shooting in Austin last month by a gunman who killed three people while wearing a hoodie that read “Property of Allah,” has encouraged GOP state lawmakers in recent months to try to limit the influence of Muslim groups.
…Gov. Greg Abbott, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and other state lawmakers have pledged to ban “sharia law” and successfully blocked Islamic housing developments.
…On Monday, [TAG Ken] Paxton — who is running against Sen. John Cornyn in the Republican primary runoff election for U.S. Senate — announced he was investigating a Dallas-based Islamic religious court.
Sharia, based mainly on the Quran and the teachings of the prophet Muhammad, is a body of religious rules meant to guide the day-to-day lives of Muslims, but it is open to a broad range of interpretations.
[In the United States, no religious law is ever to replace the U.S. Constitution.]
…more than 300,000 Muslims live in Texas.
…On Tuesday night, after the board members walked out, Zayan had two minutes [the same amount of time all 100 testifiers were given at this SBOE meeting]…
DUELING RALLIES
Early Tuesday morning, Zayan arrived at the state building where the SBOE meets…to find the halls unusually crowded with hundreds of attendees.
Many wore red T-shirts that said “Patriot Academy” on the front and “Defend freedom, defeat sharia” on the back.
…On the speakers list, she saw members of Rise Align Ignite Reclaim Foundation, a conservative Texas-based group that claims to fight Islamist extremism.
…some of the attendees who had filled the meeting room and two overflow rooms began talking out in the halls, quoting scripture and the Quran.
…Inside the lobby, [Brandon] Hall, the board member, prayed over conservative supporters. He stood with fellow board member [Julie] Pickren; Abraham George, the state GOP chairman; and several Republican state legislators…
“Lord, we invite you into this building, we invite you into the room,” [SBOE member Brandon] Hall said. “We pray for social studies standards that will give our children the excellent education that they deserve.”
Later, [SBOE Member Julie] Pickren explained that she walked out when Zayan spoke because she was following the will of her constituents, who live along what she referred to as “the Gulf of America.”
[On 1.20.25, Pres. Trump signed an executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.]
…“The over 2 million people I represent don’t care what a terrorist [Shaimaa Zayan employed by CAIR] has to say,” Pickren said.
…By the time Zayan took the lectern, it was past 6 p.m.
“I’m a former certified Texas teacher, a graduate of the special-education and diversity program at UT Austin, and the operations manager with the Austin chapter of one of our nation’s largest civil rights organizations [CAIR – designated as a terrorist organization],” she began.
…After Zayan’s time expired, [Brandon] Hall returned to the room so he could question her, but not about her views on the curriculum.
“Are you a CAIR employee,” he asked.
“Yes,” she said.
“Okay, so you were paid to be here,” he said.
Hall then asked whether CAIR had been declared a terrorist organization by the United Arab Emirates.
“CAIR has no evidence of any violence. We are a domestic civil rights organization in the U.S.,” Zayan said.
“Did they designate CAIR [as a terrorist organization]?” Hall interrupted.
“Before you question me, I have a question,” Zayan said. “If a state board of education member refused to listen to me …”
Kinsey, the [SBOE] board chair, banged his gavel.
“This is your warning, ma’am,” he said. “We are about nine hours into this meeting and it has gone pretty well, much better than I expected. The member will ask the questions, you will respond, please, if you so wish.”
Zayan conceded that CAIR had been designated a terrorist group by the UAE [United Arab Emirates]…
…Hall then asked whether the prophet Muhammad married a 6-year-old girl.
[In the early Sahih al-Burkhari, a hadith collection, it was recorded that Muhammad married a 6-year-old girl and then consummated the marriage when she was 9.]
Zayan said that was inaccurate.
…The Tuesday meeting would drag on into the next morning [well past midnight]
[The SBOE members reported for the Wednesday meeting which began promptly at 9:00 A.M.]
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SBOE
4.2.26 -- “SBOE Members Are Vital to the Future of Texas’ Students” -- By Donna Garner -- https://donnagarner.org/4-2-26-sboe-members-are-vital-to-the-future-of-texas-students-by-donna-garner/
SOURCES I USED TO WRITE THIS 4.13.26 ARTICLE
4.10.26 – “Texas Congressmen Urge State Board of Education To Reject Islamic Influence” -- By Addie Hoveland -- https://texasscorecard.com/state/texas-congressional-members-urge-state-board-of-education-to-reject-islamic-influence/
4.9.26 – “In Texas, a State Hearing on Social Studies Becomes a Clash of Religions” – By Molly Hennessy-Fiske -- The Washington Post --https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2026/04/09/texas-muslims-terrorism-education/?utm_source=chatgpt.com