This is TPR's roundup of the latest headlines and news developments. It provides a summary of the stories TPR is following.
Today's weather: Forecast calls for a chance of showers and thunderstorms throughout the day. A high near 65, with a low around 57 later on tonight.
North East ISD to close three schools
The North East ISD board unanimously voted Monday night to close Driscoll Middle School, Clear Spring Elementary and Wilshire Elementary Monday night.
The district faces a budget deficit and a loss of nearly 12,000 students.
Two trustees tried to delay voting on the school closures to have more time to answer questions. But when their motion failed, they voted in favor, along with the rest of the board.
NEISD Superintendent Sean Maika said delaying the vote would delay the school closures by a year, resulting in the district missing out on an estimated $5 million in savings to close its budget deficit.
SA metal recycling task force delays presenting findings
A San Antonio task force has been working to recommend changes to parts of the 2012 city code that regulate metal recycling companies.
The task force — made up of industry owners and community members — is extending its timeline by a month to present its findings to city council.
Members say the city’s Development Services Department has facilitated meetings to give industry representatives an unfair advantage. There are three representatives for community members and seven for industry.
In a statement, Development Services Department Director Michael Shannon said the task force is taking a pause until March so that the department can figure out how to ensure all participants can attend and contribute meaningfully.
Texas, San Antonio schools see improvement in reading levels
New research out today shows that nearly a dozen Texas school districts have completely recovered from the pandemic, including Somerset ISD and Southside ISD.
Sean Reardon, a professor at Stanford University, is one of the project leaders of the Education Recovery Scorecard.
“We're sort of ranking them according to how well they're doing at getting their students back to where they were in 2019, and Texas is 8th in reading on that measure, but much lower if you just rank them on absolute scores," he said,
Texas is still about half a grade level behind in math and about a third of a grade level behind in reading compared to 2019.
Two people arrested in Texas soldier's Fort Campbell murder
Private First-Class Katia Dueñas Aguilar was stabbed nearly 70 times on her off base housing in Tennessee near Fort Campbell last May.
Dueñas Aguilar's husband was charged with tampering with evidence. The other suspect, a friend of Dueñas Aguilar and her husband's ex-wife, was charged with first degree murder and tampering with evidence.
The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) has been connected to the family since the beginning of this case. LULAC's David Cruz said the organization looks forward to the progress being made in the investigation.
"I think that we have all seen, I don't want to say a trend, but certainly more frequently, situations that have unfolded, and men and women in uniform have fallen victims to foul play," he said.
Toyota invests in local STEM education
The Toyota USA Foundation is providing $6.5 million in grants to East Central ISD to boost STEM education.
Toyota Texas president Susann Kazunas said the San Antonio-based maker of Tundras and Sequoias needs a strong pipeline of students to be the workforce of tomorrow.
"Not just for Toyota, but for the two million project jobs that will go unfilled, if we as a society don't find a way to get more young people involved in STEM careers," Kazunas said.
East Central ISD plans to spend the grant money on STEM teacher training and the Pecan Valley Stem Academy family resource center to help kids stay in school.
Flu cases continue to rise in Texas
Confirmed cases of the flu continued to increase in Texas for the week ending Feb. 1.
The Texas Department of State Health Services reported 64 influenza-associated outbreaks during that time.
3,262 Texans, including four children, have died of influenza or pneumonia since flu season began on Oct. 1.
DSHS also confirms a decline in RSV cases, a 50% increase in COVID-19 cases, and a 78% increase in COVID-related deaths.
