Bluebonnet Learning was approved by the Texas State Board of Education last year.
CONROE, Texas — Community members and students at a recent Conroe Independent School District meeting weighed in on a controversial Bible as the school considers whether to adopt state-approved materials with financial incentives. They voiced strong opposition to the adopted curriculum.
This curriculum is known as Bluebonnet Learning. Last November, the Texas State Board of Education approved the curriculum proposed by the Texas Education Agency, which is scheduled to begin in August 2025. It will affect English and language arts instruction in kindergarten through fifth grade in public schools that choose to implement the curriculum. .
“It’s just injecting religion where it shouldn’t be,” student Lynn Greaves said during the meeting. Community member Dr. Lynn Walters criticized this premise, saying, “The idea that children will learn to read because it incorporates Bible stories is ridiculous.”
Republican State Board of Education Commissioner Audrey Young defended the curriculum, stressing that it was “written to support literature, not to teach religion.” She said religious texts make up about 10 percent of the materials, with the rest focused on literature.
The program is currently being piloted in Temple ISD and the Lubbock School District, with results expected this spring. School districts that adopt the curriculum will receive a state grant of $60 per student.
No supporters spoke during the meeting’s public comment period. Conroe ISD officials are still discussing whether to implement the curriculum next school year.
