A newly elected band of bankrupt, bought and criminal-abetting representatives joined the Texas State Board of Education this year. The 15-member SBOE sets curriculum standards; reviews and updates instructional materials; makes decisions on new charter school applications; and oversees the state’s Permanent School Fund—a $56 billion endowment that gives Texas local public schools another form of revenue besides tax dollars.
Brooks, Pickren, Francis, and Kinsey all campaigned to eliminate “critical race theory” from public school curriculums and support charter schools while evoking Christian values. The conspiracy theories that these new SBOE board members are pushing foreshadow what debates around the state’s curricular updates could look like. Last year, conservative backlash forced the SBOE to
updating the state’s social studies curriculum until 2025, when conservatives could count on a stronger contingent of right-wing voices on the board.