4.18.25
“TX Schools: Dangerous Places for Both Students and Teachers”
From Donna Garner
COMMENTS BY DONNA GARNER: Below are several articles that discuss pending legislation in the Texas Legislature to help with discipline of school students and also to protect teachers.
K-3 is fast becoming one of the most out-of-control environments because school policies interfere with teachers being able to guide children to develop respect and self-control toward all those around them.
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4.16.25 – The Texan
“Texas House School Discipline Bill HB 6 Passes After Debate Between Lawmakers”
By Cameron Abrams
Excerpts from this article:
A bill [HB 6 -- https://capitol.texas.gov/BillLookup/History.aspx?LegSess=89R&Bill=HB6] intended to reform classroom policy and create greater capacity for school discipline was the subject of extended debate and sharp disagreement among lawmakers on Tuesday as both defenders and opponents of the legislation argued about the necessity of the proposal.
House Bill (HB) 6, authored by Rep. Jeff Leach (R-Plano), aims to amend school discipline policies in Texas public schools, particularly in terms of suspension and “alternative education programs.”
The bill, also known as the “Teacher Bill of Rights,” has already been subject to personal and far-reaching testimony in a House committee hearing where parents, school administrators, and teachers detailed their experience with escalating acts of violence in Texas classrooms.
Leach put the scope of the legislation into clear terms during the layout: “The bill expands teachers' ability to maintain order, to safeguard students' safety, and to uphold academic integrity in the classroom.”
A committee substitute was presented before the House floor on Tuesday, which differed slightly from the original version of the legislation.
…At multiple points during the debate, Leach responded with how teachers and administrators have contended that they need the ability to discipline students who are acting out and harming the classroom learning environment, including physically harming other students and teachers.
REAL PROBLEMS IN K-3
“I see it with my own eyes that kids K through 3…where we're having the most trouble, where teachers are saying, We feel handcuffed,’ ‘We feel powerless,’ We can't do anything,’ is in K through 3.”
Leach added during the exchange that for “kindergartners, second graders, third graders who are assaulting teachers and fellow students, that maybe what that kid needs, maybe what that kid needs more than anything, is to go home for a few days.”
…While other amendments were proposed, Leach adopted one of his own with clarifying language as well as one from Rep. Mike Olcott (R-Fort Worth) ensuring students face punishment for committing “offense of assault” as defined in the Penal Code.
…“I'm going to support this bill because I think we need to do something to make sure our schools are safe, our classrooms are safe, and our teachers are safe. And more especially, all the other students are safe,” Rep. Harold Dutton (D-Houston) stated.
Rep. John Bryant (D-Dallas) also spoke in support of HB 6: “No matter what the cost is, we must make sure that our schools are a place every child wants to be and every child can find to be a place of learning in a place of growth, in a place of safety. And a place that earns the confidence of the public.”
The House’s “Teacher Bill of Rights” passed on second reading 121 to 21…was praised by House Speaker Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock) as helping to “re-establish respect for this profession.”
RECRUITING AND RETAINING QUALITY EDUCATORS
“Teachers from around the state have pointed to the ability to enforce discipline in the classroom as being as important as compensation when it comes to recruiting and retaining quality educators,” Burrows stated in a press release.
“We have seen increasingly disruptive behavior in classrooms across the nation, but here in Texas, lawmakers are empowering teachers to defend their learning environments for our students to succeed.”
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3.20.25 – The Texan
“Classroom Discipline, Student Violence Testimony Heard in Texas House Committee Hearing”
By Cameron Abrams
Excerpts from this article:
TEACHER BILL OF RIGHTS
…House Bill (HB) 6 by Rep. Jeff Leach (R-Plano) [also referred to as “Teacher Bill of Rights”] seeks to address the issue by reforming education policies regarding both in- and out-of-school suspensions.
…“Our teachers should be spending their time educating, not constantly managing disruptions and disciplinary issues,” Leach explains.
…Under his proposed legislation, principals and administrators may suspend students for violations outlined in the school’s student code of conduct.
IN-SCHOOL SUSPENSION – NO TIME LIMIT RESTRICTIONS
Additionally, the bill expands the definition of an “in-school suspension” (ISS) to state that it is “not subject to any time limit.”
Leach was explicit about the scope of action that his bill… “There is no restriction on the use of ISS, thereby returning discretion to school districts to utilize ISS to address misconduct depending on the nature and circumstances of the particular offense.”
…“Student misconduct in the classroom is one of the most cited reasons for teachers leaving the profession and/or for aspiring teachers to not get into the profession,” Leach explained to the committee during the layout of his legislation.
VIRTUAL DISCIPLINARY ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION PROGRAMS
The bill also introduces “Virtual Disciplinary Alternative Education Programs” that allow a student who has been expelled to be placed in a program to receive “virtual instruction and instructional materials for remote learning to the student.”
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Moreover, HB 6 would also expand the scope in which legal actions for “certain students” can be taken.
LEGAL ACTION BY SCHOOL DISTRICT
If a “threat assessment” determines that a student poses a “substantially likely to result in physical harm,” the school district can file a civil lawsuit to obtain an injunction for immediate placement in an “alternative education setting.”
…Over one million ISS [In-School Suspension] actions were brought against more than 475,000 students during the 2023–2024 school year, according to the Texas Education Agency (TEA).
For OSS [Out-of-School Suspensions], TEA reports around 440,000 actions affecting approximately 251,000 students.
This is in addition to the 121,245 students that were placed in DAEP [Disciplinary Alternative Education Program].
VIOLENCE IN SCHOOLS REPORTED
Stephanie Howe, superintendent of Corsicana Independent School District (ISD), recalled an incident where an assistant principal at Collins Intermediate School was “brutally attacked” by a student who “threw multiple chairs and a wooden hanger,” which resulted in the assistant principal being “permanently blind in one eye.”
“Our schools are not always the safe havens they should be. As educators, we are not just administrators, we are guardians of our students' safety and well-being,” Howe explained.
“It is our duty to ensure that every child who walks through our doors feels safe and supported.”
Dr. Jo Ann Fey, superintendent at Killeen ISD, spoke to the panel of lawmakers about her experience at Texas public schools, in light of a fatal stabbing incident that recently occurred at Roy J. Smith Middle School.
She testified to how “significant disruptions” are creating an environment that “threatens the immediate safety of others in that setting.”
“Imagine being a first-grade teacher and witnessing a child repeatedly kicking, biting, and scratching another third student for three consecutive days.”
Then you're told, "‘I'm sorry, but my hands are tied because the student is too young and there are limitations to what I can do,’” Fey explained.
“Meanwhile, you keep hearing that the school or administration does nothing and when in reality, the system prevents you from taking necessary action.”
She went on to explain how reported incidents of students “carrying a weapon, aggravated assault, sexual assault, arson, murder, indecency with a child,” are happening “off-campus,” but school staff and administrators’ “hands were tied” and could do nothing about it “because the egregious behaviors were off-campus.”
“Campus leaders are held hostage to the system when the system is not working for the very community that they serve. Students that come to school to learn deserve better, teachers deserve better, and the communities deserve better.”
COMMENTS FROM TX ED. COMM. MIKE MORATH
Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath commented during a Texas House committee hearing in February about the need for “strong discipline reform for our teachers” and how “school districts are wrestling with vacancies,” adding that “coming out of COVID” there was a “significant increase” of teacher departures.
TESTIMONY FROM SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS
According to a 2023 TEA teacher vacancy report, classroom discipline is a “top concern” for 45 percent of elementary school teachers, 49 percent of secondary school teachers, and 53 percent of “recently retired/resigned” teachers.
During the HB 6 discussion in committee, the Richardson ISD superintendent described an incident where a “student threw a chair” at a classroom teacher that resulted in a “trip to the emergency room because of a broken leg.”
Another superintendent, Tonya Knowlton from Community ISD, spoke about an “alarming rise in the student violence and classroom disruptions… Within the first two months of this year, we had over 30 staff injuries, including bites, punches, and teachers seeking medical care.”
These incidents Knowlton described are not confined to secondary school students but rather are being spurred on by younger students:
“One elementary teacher was punched in the stomach by a student simply because he didn't want to talk about his work.”
“A kindergarten student destroyed his classroom, throwing books, tearing students' work from the walls, and hitting the teacher.”
“We've replaced staff members' glasses, we've sent principals home with black eyes, and we've sent staff members to the emergency room,” Knowlton added.
“But the real victims aren't just the teachers, they're the other students — young children eager to learn, liking school.”
This “extreme behavior” Knowlton described among younger students, such as “screaming, cursing, throwing objects, biting, and spitting,” has forced teachers to “spend their days managing chaos instead of teaching.”
RETENTION OF CLASSROOM TEACHERS
A University of Houston study has found that retention of a first-year “traditional public school classroom teacher” going into their second year has fallen in the past decade, and in 2020-2021, 16.6 percent of those teachers going into their second year of teaching either moved to a different school campus or “left teaching entirely.”
…Leach said that promoting the “authority of teachers to manage classroom discipline” to “ensure every single student receives a structured and supportive educational experience” is the ultimate goal of his legislation.”
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MORE INFORMATION
3.25.25 – “Zero-Tolerance or Zero Consequences? TX Lawmakers Debate School Discipline” -- By Talia Richman – Dallas Morning News -- https://www.dallasnews.com/news/education/2025/03/25/zero-tolerance-or-zero-consequences-texas-lawmakers-debate-school-discipline/