Deputy Superintendent Kristen Hole speaks to the Houston ISD board of managers about adopting Bluebonnet Learning curriculum on June 25, 2026.

Houston ISD's state-appointed board of managers greenlit Bible-infused curriculum for elementary school students at a special board meeting Thursday night, when the board also voted to adopt a $2 billion operating budget for 2026-27.

The state-developed Bluebonnet Learning curriculum for students in kindergarten through fifth grade has been criticized for its inclusion of biblical teachings in reading and language arts lessons. Its implementation also comes with a per-student financial incentive – more than $3 million in additional revenue for HISD, the largest school district in Texas.

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The Bible-infused curriculum, approved by the State Board of Education in 2024, teaches elementary school students about the Golden Rule using text from the Bible, introduces fifth-graders to Leonardo Da Vinci's "The Last Supper" painting based on the Christian story about the last meal of Jesus Christ, and features a story on the Parable of the Prodigal Son from the Bible.

Dozens of community members spoke out against the curriculum and urged the HISD board to vote against adopting it.

Former high school teacher and current HISD parent Victoria Hauptman-Bryan called the implementation of the curriculum "unconstitutional."

"That the state of Texas has spent taxpayer money to write such a curriculum is disgusting," she said.

HISD said in a Friday statement that references to the Bible will be “presented as literature and historical text for academic study, consistent with Texas state standards. They are not used for religious instruction or religious practice.”

“The Bluebonnet materials align with Houston ISD’s existing literacy framework, including explicit and systematic phonics, knowledge-rich grade-level texts, and instruction designed to build strong readers,” the district also said in its statement. “HISD will continue using its own lesson design and instructional approach, incorporating the Bluebonnet materials to meet new state requirements while minimizing changes for teachers.”

The Texas Education Agency, which developed Bluebonnet Learning materials, issued more than 4,000 corrections and changes in February – including hundreds of copyright violations, formatting errors and typos. According to The Texas Tribune, the corrections will cost taxpayers up to $8.4 million.

RELATED: Texas education board approves 4,200 corrections in Bible-infused curriculum

But adoption of the curriculum also comes with a significant financial incentive for school districts, and the budget adopted by HISD includes a nearly $25 million deficit. Deputy Superintendent Kristen Hole said HISD would be able to access roughly $3.3 million in additional funding by implementing the curriculum.

HISD is the latest district in the state to approve the curriculum. Hole added in her presentation to the board that 30% of districts across the state have adopted Bluebonnet and 12% of all kindergarten through fifth-grade classrooms are actively using it. Hole said the materials will be available in English and Spanish.

"A betrayal"

Priscilla Midani, a parent of a Travis Elementary student, said the errors in Bluebonnet will take millions of dollars to fix when schools in the district and across the state are already underfunded. She also expressed frustration at the district's decision to bring the item for review after the school year had ended.

"Among the many reasons I oppose its adoption are separation of church and state, schools should not be in the business of teaching faith in any capacity, lack of transparency and inopportune timing," Midani said. "To review this by the board during summer vacation does not give the community, families or parents adequate time to raise proper discussion regarding the matter."

State-appointed board member Marco Rosales said he had reviewed the materials personally and did not feel the curriculum amounts to religious indoctrination, "but rather it is the use of religious texts in a few instances for providing context to other, perhaps historical texts."

Rosales asked Hole if she felt the curriculum is overtly religious.

"What I will say is that by law we are not allowed to promote religion, and so the guidance to teachers is that you are not to promote religion, you are to stay focused on the academic learning objective and not do that promotion," Hole said. "We are neutral on any one religion, and that’s the guidance that we were providing."

Faith leaders from Houston stand during a presentation about Bluebonnet Learning, which includes Bible-infused lessons, at a Houston ISD board meeting on June 25, 2026.

But several faith leaders who attended the meeting, who stood silently as a form of protest during the presentation proposing the adoption of Bluebonnet Learning, disagreed with their arguments.

Rabbi Joshua Fixler with the Congregation Emanu El said he laughed when board members denied the curriculum contains Christian influences.

"If [Rosales] says he’s read the curriculum and hasn’t found that then I can’t imagine he’s read it very closely," Fixler said.

Fixler called the unanimous and swift vote to approve Bluebonnet a "betrayal."

"I am deeply concerned that the Bluebonnet curriculum is a violation of our public school students’ religious liberty," Fixler said. "I am also deeply concerned that this board slipped this item onto the agenda late, so that people couldn’t testify."

Pastor Alma Gast with Messiah Lutheran Church said she felt compelled to stand up against the Bluebonnet curriculum because of her role in the church.

"I get frustrated when Christianity gets lumped into one narrative as we’re seeing a lot in the public debate around Christianity," Gast said. "And to stand for a different voice from Christianity that represents something different, I think it is a huge part of what I understand my role to be."