Five board members voted in favor of the curriculum and two abstained. Marianne Horton and Melissa Semmler abstained as they want to hear feedback from teachers.
The gist
Prior to the vote, board members had decided at the Jan. 7 meeting they would continue gathering feedback from teachers, and they would come back to the board for a vote in May, as previously reported by Community Impact. However, several board members opted to adopt it sooner to provide implementation time.
Hedith Sauceda-Upshaw, assistant superintendent for teaching and learning, said at the Jan. 7 meeting the district would need to make an implementation plan and train teachers over the summer.
"The district needs as much lead time as possible to implement this by the 2025-26 school year,” trustee Lindsay Dawson said. “May ... is cutting it too close in my opinion.”
“Our [English Language Arts] curriculum is a huge priority. ... Our educators have enough on their plate, and we must make fiscally sound purchases, especially in a budget deficit. It is time to take action so I move that we adopt Bluebonnet,” trustee Tiffany Nelson said.
Bluebonnet Learning material had garnered some criticism and concerns from parents and educators across the state in 2024 since it includes frequent references to Christianity and the Bible in the materials, as previously reported by Community Impact. However, board members said the curriculum provides material that is relevant for students and helps them to learn.
“Bluebonnet has a strong component of American exceptionalism that is woven throughout the curriculum. Further, this curriculum also displays why Texas is special. Bluebonnet is also content rich, providing culturally relevant materials that [helps students] remember the topic and lesson,” trustee Nicole May said.
How we got here
Bluebonnet Learning was approved by the State Board of Education from a proposal from the Texas Education Agency following the approval of House Bill 1605 during the 2023 88th legislative session. HB 1605 includes increased funding for approved instructional materials, according to the TEA.
SBOE District 8 President Audrey Young on Jan. 7 told the board the curriculum meets all state requirements, and she addressed the concerns from community members about the religious references, stating the material is placed in a context of lifelong learning.
Bluebonnet Learning products are free of charge to access online in their digital format; however, hard copy print materials are not free, according to the TEA website. Following HB 1605, the district will have additional annual funding of $1.3 million for the Bluebonnet program that was received in late 2024.
"They will have $8 million more in total funding available by 2029 because this is an OER [Open Education Resources] which we could desperately use given our budget situation," Dawson said at the Feb. 18 meeting.
What they’re saying
“A couple of months ago we established a teacher committee to look into the curriculum and give their input. I think just from seeing the dual language program, it can be done for our teachers to give them an opportunity to look into the curriculum before a vote,” trustee Marianne Horton said.
“We are in a literacy crisis and not just in this district but across this nation. This district has acknowledged that our current in-house
RLA curriculum is a stopgap and a ‘bridge of study that we are not married to.’ Bottom line, it is time for a new curriculum that will not only successfully equip our students to read but will hold to a higher standard,” Dawson said.
“I recognize the limited time that teachers have both in terms of their work day and in implementing the curriculum. This necessitates a fast decision that minimizes the strain on educators and maximizes the curriculum's impact,” board president Misty Odenweller said.
What’s next
The curriculum will be put into place at some campuses in the 2025-26 school year while the district works to see if it is able to be placed in all of the campuses, according to discussion at the meeting.
