director for the Texas Freedom Network, participate in an interfaith funeral-themed protest outside the Barbara Jordan Building in Austin on Monday, June 22, 2026. (Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via AP)”>By
JIM VERTUNO and JAMIE STENGLE
Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year]
Texas (AP) — Bible stories have become required reading for more than 5 million public school students in Texas
The vote to approve the plan Friday by the Republican-controlled Texas State Board of Education reflects a broader conservative effort to introduce more religion into U.S. schools. Last year, Texas became the largest state to require every classroom to display the Ten Commandments
The mandated reading list has drawn fierce opposition. Critics argue that it violates the constitutional separation of church and state, lacks diversity, and favors Christianity over other religions. Supporters say Judeo-Christian traditions were fundamental to the nation’s founding and that should be reflected in the public school curriculum
Here’s what to know about the reading list and the broader fight over religion in public schools:
State Board of Education Vice Chair Pam Little votes on a proposed required reading list during a meeting on social studies standards at the Barbara Jordan Building in Austin on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (Jay Janner /Austin American-Statesman
Republicans and Trump are pushing more religion into classrooms
President Donald Trump has pledged to protect and expand religious expression in public schools nationwide, and Texas — a red state that is home to about one in 10 of all U.S. public school students — often sets the agenda
In 2023, Texas became the first state to allow the hiring of chaplains to counsel students, and the following year, the board narrowly approved an optional Bible-infused curriculum for elementary schools. Last year, Republican lawmakers required public schools to display the Ten Commandments, a measure recently upheld by a federal appeals court
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Texas has about 5.5 million public school students from kindergarten through high school. The required reading list will begin taking effect in 2030
“We need to focus on what our nation was founded on and not apologize for that,” Susan Perez, founder of Citizens for Education Reform, told the education board during testimony this week. “It is the truth and we should not be afraid.”
List requires Bible readings from elementary to high school
Picture-book stories for elementary students including “David and Goliath” and “Daniel and the Lion’s Den” are on the required reading list. By fourth grade, students will encounter passages about Jesus in the New Testament
One proposed Bible story, a picture book about Noah’s Ark, was removed from a list of first-grade titles this week after a board member said it only had one page of text and voiced objections to descriptions of animals killed in the flood
In high school, students will read the parable of the prodigal son, portions of the Book of Job, and the story of Adam and Eve
Texas may be the first state to enact a required reading list that includes Bible passages
Antero Garcia, president of the National Council of Teachers of English and a Stanford University professor, said he doesn’t know of any other state that has such a list. Educators at the district and school level usually choose what texts their students will read, Garcia said
Kasey Meehan, director of PEN America’s Freedom to Read program, said she believes a reading list with mandatory religious texts is “unique” to Texas
“I think there’s lots of state lists that exist that are like advised readings, suggested readings,” she said
Critics say the proposal favors Christianity over other religions
The required readings rely heavily on the King James Bible, one of the most popular translations, and more recent evangelical translations that critics argue lean too heavily on Christian interpretations of the texts
Other critics question whether religious stories should be taught at all in schools attended by thousands of children of Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu and other faiths, and others who identify as atheist or agnostic
“I do think that it’s disturbing that there are no texts from other religious traditions that are included,” said Frank Strong, an English and journalism teacher and co-founder of the student advocacy group Texas Freedom to Read
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Stengle reported from Dallas
JIM VERTUNO
