Committee rejects three image changes in publisher updates, leaves remainder pending

The committee on instruction discussed updates and substitutions to law‑approved instructional materials submitted by an approved publisher and voted to reject three specific image changes while leaving action on the remaining proposed updates pending further procedure.

Committee members said the agenda item (approval of updates and substitutions to approved instructional materials) reflects new rules establishing a recurring weekly process for publishers to submit changes. A staff presenter described the rule changes as “brand new. The first time ever,” and explained the three categories of edits: image swaps, image removals for licensing, and content moved without substantive change.

Members raised specific concerns about images in a Juneteenth unit and about three items submitted by the Texas Education Agency’s approved publisher. After a motion to divide the question, the committee voted on a motion “to not approve” the publisher’s requested image changes for (1) an image described as the Permian Basin image, (2) a kindergarten image in unit K‑11, and (3) an image in grade 5 unit 9. The motion passed with four members voting yes and one voting no. The committee then had a separate motion on the floor to approve the remaining substitutions; the transcript records the motion and second but does not record a final roll‑call tally for that second vote.

Committee discussion also covered process questions: staff said there are 95 approved products on the list and that approved publishers may submit changes at any time under the new rules. Staff noted some requested edits reflect licensing issues and some are only intended to “make it consistent” with other images. Members asked whether publishers could be given time to supply clarifying information and whether the committee could remove particular updates from consideration until questions were answered. A committee member described the preferred downstream procedure: make the main motion, allow a member to divide the question, then vote separately on the pieces.

The committee recorded the rejection vote on the three image changes. The motion to approve the remainder of the publisher’s submitted changes was on the floor at the close of the recorded transcript segment; the committee discussed specifics to be captured in the minutes (official titles and item numbers) before further action.

Ending: The committee’s procedural steps — dividing the question, rejecting three images, and leaving the remaining updates under separate consideration — set the agenda for follow‑up action and clarified that publishers must follow the new weekly submission timeline under the committee’s recently adopted rules.