Federal Education Law and Policy Alert
• Shutdown impacts education – Thousands furloughed, major grants will continue and civil rights investigations halted.
• English learner protections remain – Federal laws still require support for English learners despite withdrawn guidance.
• Court protects immigrant children – Head Start access restored for immigrant families after discriminatory rule blocked.
• Censorship laws challenged – Students and educators in Texas and Georgia push back against extreme curriculum bans.
• Civil rights enforcement gutted – Courts allow Education Department layoffs, slashing federal oversight capacity.
• Ten Commandments displays blocked – Federal judges reaffirm religious freedom in Texas and Georgia public schools.
Statement
IDRA, alongside the Texas Immigration Law Council and a broad coalition of business, faith, educator and student groups, filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in U.S. v. Texas to do what Texas state leaders refused to do: defend the Texas Dream Act and the ability of Texas high school graduates to access and succeed in college, regardless of immigration status.
Learn More
Webinar Oct 23
Texas students are navigating new barriers to college as diversity restrictions reshape admissions and campus support. Your voice matters! Texas students deserve equitable access to college. IDRA invites you to a virtual convening bringing together students, parents, educators and advocates.
Learn More
Classnotes Podcast Episode 251
In this new IDRA Classnotes Podcast episode, IDRA Education Policy Fellows share why they applied, what they learned, and how the fellowship helped them turn lived experience into policy impact.
Learn More
Newsletter
• Breakthrough for Students – Texas State Board Approves Standards for New Bilingual Special Education Teacher Certificate
• Students Face Confusion and College Blackouts After Sudden Blockage of the Texas Dream Act
• Celebrating Aurelio Montemayor’s 50 Years with IDRA
• Honoring Latino Heritage – Free Classroom Lessons
• New Mexican American Studies Lesson Plans
• Immigrant Students’ Rights to Attend Public Schools
eNews
As students, families and educators get settled in this new school year, this alert is a reminder that public schools, by law, must serve all students.
Learn More
eNews
As educators and families get into the rhythm of a new school year, safety was on our minds, even before Wednesday’s tragedy in Minneapolis. We are saddened by such instances of violence in our schools and communities. We are also more determined than ever to ensure that safe, supportive, and welcoming schools are a reality for every young person. See free resources for schools and communities.
Learn More
eNews
For five decades, Aurelio has inspired educators, families, and students across the nation.
Learn More
eNews
IDRA’s newest model policy package provides policy language for states, school districts, and schools to adopt research-based student and family leadership and engagement strategies.
The package is a blueprint for transforming how schools relate to families and students, moving beyond surface-level communication to build real partnerships rooted in equity, trust and shared leadership.
Newsletter Special Edition
Through her vision and voice, Dr. María “Cuca” Robledo Montecel changed education forever.
Learn More
Release
With sad hearts, we share the news that David L. Benson, vice chair of the IDRA Board of Directors, passed away June 23, 2025. He was a man of hope and determination for justice.
Learn More
Alert
The 89th Texas Legislative session has wrapped up, and certain lawmakers spent those 140 days doing what we call the “Texas Three Step:” defunding public schools; demonizing them by attacking educators and what students can learn; and privatizing public education through private school vouchers. Despite a litany of attacks, IDRA and our partners stood strong in the face of billionaire-backed campaigns to harm students’ freedom to learn and ram through vouchers against most Texans’ wishes. We advocated alongside San Antonio educators who had lived through failed local voucher experiments and shared their stories on why vouchers hurt our communities most.
Learn More
eNews
Six students received prizes in a competition among participants in the IDRA Youth Leadership Now program, an asset-based leadership development program serving eighth-grade students who are deemed at risk of dropping out. In a reflection contest for YLN students in multiple school districts in Texas, the tutors wrote about how the program helped them do better in school and how they had helped their tutees to do better.
Learn More
eNews
Three students received prizes in a competition among participants in the IDRA VisionCoders program, an eighth-grade computer science course developed by IDRA serving Title I middle schools in Bexar County. In this innovative course, middle school students who are in at-risk situations become software designers who create educational games for younger students (their “buddies”).
Learn More
eNews
“I felt like I had a place to go where I was always welcomed.” – Kristina Espino, Odessa High School
Learn More
eNews
Students are still being hit in schools. That could finally end. The Protecting Our Students in Schools Act would end corporal punishment in all public schools receiving federal funds
Learn More
Alert
• IDRA Equipped Georgia Advocates to Defend Public Education
• Long Debate on School Safety and Discipline Results in Mixed Bag Legislation
• Charter Legislation Passes, Voucher Expansion Stalls
• Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Ban Defeated – For Now
• Georgia’s Education Budget Funds Vouchers First, Mental Health and Poverty Support Second
• Partners Pushed Against Key Bills Affecting Education and Youth
• Spotlight: Coalition and Community Work in Georgia
News
Barriers to access college are a longstanding challenge for Texas students from underrepresented backgrounds. Federal and state restrictions on diversity, equity and inclusion introduced new barriers. IDRA released a preliminary report this month from its study of the impact of Texas Senate Bill 17’s ban on college diversity, equity and inclusion offices in 2023 and the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision that same year to significantly limit race-conscious admissions in higher education on marginalized college-going students.
Learn More
New Report
State legislatures across the U.S. South are acting on policies that significantly impact education equity. IDRA has released a new report outlining key legislative actions taken last year and previewing the current year.
Learn More
eNews
These students wrote a petition, gathered signatures and took their case to the school board
Learn More
eNews
A multiracial, intergenerational coalition of advocates filed a friend-of-the-court brief urging a Texas appellate court to end a Houston-area school district’s years-long practice of discriminating against Black students wearing racially and culturally significant hairstyles.
Learn More
eNews
Brownsville ISD middle school students who are in at-risk situations will become the next generation of technology leaders through an innovative project called IDRA Youth TechXperts™. Through this in-school program, eighth-grade students will gain cutting-edge STEM skills while also fostering leadership, inclusivity and real-world experience.
Learn More
eNews
Contact
5815 Callaghan Road, Suite 101
San Antonio, TX 78228
Phone: 210-444-1710
Fax: 210-444-1714
