the suit
the suit, state District Judge Reed O' Connor stopped the law from being enforced.
That means non-citizens would have to pay the considerably higher tuition rates charged to international students.
Multiple parties have sued seeking to join the suit after the state declined, but the judge has not ruled on that bid, leaving colleges and universities in limbo as tuition bills are sent out.
“They would have had a very hard time proving that a 25-year state law that has helped tens of thousands of students is some- how harming the U.S.," said David Donatti of the American
Civil Liberties Union, which is seeking to join the suit. "Our ar guments are very strong. To me, our right to intervene is extremely clear.”
Texas has more than 57,000 students without legal documentation, second only to California, according to Inside Higher Ed.
They would face tuition rates up to four times higher than in-state tuition if the ban on the Dream Act becomes permanent.
No cellphones in schools, other new laws to take effect Students will no longer be able to access their cellphones or other electronic devices in public schools when a new law takes effect Sept. 1, according to The
in El Paso opens
What will eventually be the largest immigrant detention fa- cility in the U.S. opened in El Paso at Fort Bliss last weekend, according to The Texas Tribune.
The facility initially is accepting up to 1,000 detainees. Over the next two years, its planned capacity will expand to 5,000.
"Upon completion, this will be the largest federal detention center in history for this critical mission — the deportation of illegal aliens," Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson said during a briefing.
The tent camp, called Camp East Montana, was built by a pri- vate firm at a cost of $232 mil lion.
The camp’s opening comes as the Trump administration seeks to arrest 3,000 migrants daily.
TEA releases 2025 accountability ratings
The Texas Education Agency has released both the 2025 A-F accountability ratings and the delayed 2024 ratings for public school systems and campuses. The latter were delayed by legal challenges.
“Today marks a return to clarity and accountability. With the release of the 2025 A–F Ratings, we are reinforcing our commitment to transparency and to providing accurate, readily available information that helps every family understand how their school is doing,” said Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath.
A total of 1,208 districts and 9,084 campuses were rated in 2025. Compared with 2024, 24% of districts and 31% of campus es improved their letter grade.
A small portion — 15% — saw their grades decline while most maintained their previous rating.
To view the 2025 A-F Ratings for school systems and campuses across the state, go to Txschools. gov. The site features several different facets to allow people to better understand accountability ratings data, including a map to search for schools by address and compare selected schools.
Latest poll shows Cornyn with slight primary edge U.S. Sen. John Cornyn leads his GOP challenger, Texas At - torney General Ken Paxton, by 1 percentage point, The Tribune reported.
The Emerson College poll used a sample of nearly 500 registered Texans who plan to vote in next March’s Republican prima- ry. It showed Cornyn with 30% of those who responded, while Paxton garnered 29%. Many of the Republican voters who were polled remain undecided - 37%.
Cornyn allies have already begun spending millions of dol- lars in advertising, while Paxton has opted to wait until closer to the primary. Both candidates are seeking Trump’s endorsement, but he has not publicly weighed in so far.
Gary Borders is a veteran award-winning Texas journalist. He published a number of community newspapers in Texas during a 30year span, including in Longview, Fort Stockton, Nacogdoches, Lufkin and Cedar Park. Email: [email protected].
