The Texas State Board of Education voted to approve a new curriculum that incorporates Bible teachings into elementary school lessons, despite concerns that it could blur the line between religion and public education.

Texas’ education board has voted to allow Bible-infused teachings in elementary schools.

Eight out of the 15 board members at The Texas State Board of Education gave their preliminary approval and voted in favor of keeping the Bluebonnet Learning curriculum.

The curriculum — designed by the state’s public education agency — would allow teachings from the Bible such as the Golden Rule and lessons from books such as Genesis into classrooms. Under the plan, it would be optional for schools to adopt the curriculum though they would receive additional funding if they did so.

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Over the last several months, panels of educators and medical professionals formulated recommendations to overhaul the health and sex education policies. This marks the board’s first thorough revision to its sex education policy since 1997, and will affect millions of students in the state. In 2017, they unsuccessfully pushed a policy preventing transgender people from using public bathrooms that match their gender identity. Experts including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association and the American Public Health Association oppose abstinence-only education and champion comprehensive sex education. This type of sex education prioritizes accurate and exhaustive information about contraception, human sexuality and sexually transmitted infections.

The Texas State Board of Education sets curriculum standards for Texas public schools, and its makeup will change after Tuesday's election. But Republicans appeared poised to keep control of two other seats Texas Democrats wanted to flip this year. Currently, the 15-member education board seats 10 Republicans and five Democrats — with eight seats in play this year. Popp also picked up the support of Texas Values, a conservative statewide advocacy group, which recently urged the board to adopt abstinence-focused sex education. The board is weeks away from revising Texas' sex education policy, its first attempt to do so since 1997.

The Texas State Board of Education discussed and took a preliminary vote on sex education standards this week. Currently, learning about birth control methods beyond abstinence is only a requirement in high school, where health education is an optional course. About 39% of Texas high school students report having had sex, but less than half of them used condoms and a small percentage used birth control pills. Over the last several months, panels of educators and medical professionals formulated recommendations to overhaul the health and sex education policies. "I don't think at the high school level we can afford to be cryptic with regards to our youth," said Marisa Perez-Diaz, a Converse Democrat.

The Texas State Board of Education meets in Austin. The Texas State Board of Education Friday vetoed three out of eight new charter school operators seeking to open schools across the state. Traditional public schools can lose millions of dollars due to declining enrollment as students leave for nearby charters. The board's decision not to veto five charter schools angered some charter critics Friday afternoon. "The State Board of Education dealt a blow to Texas school children and taxpayers with its approval of five new unneeded charter school applications that we can ill-afford, particularly during a pandemic-driven financial crisis," said Texas State Teachers Association President Ovidia Molina in a statement.

He even taught sexual education classes specifically for LGBTQ students through Youth First, a program in North Texas for queer teens. Texas does not require public schools to teach LGBTQ issues in sex education, an omission that frustrates Sandlin, who is bisexual and a transgender boy. All Texas public schools must offer health education for students in kindergarten through eighth grade, but health education is optional in high school. Lepine remembers learning the details of sex education from the media and friends, who were similarly uneducated and confused. Sex education that includes LGBTQ students benefits everyone, they said.

Social mediaNo one on the Texas State Board of Education wants conspiracy theorist Robert Morrow to join their ranks and Tuesday's runoff election may give them their wish. All nine Republicans on the 15-member board endorsed Popp, including its chair, Keven Ellis, who tweeted Tuesday morning, "THOSE IN SBOE DISTRICT 5, SAY NO TO ROBERT MORROW. In March's primary, Morrow won 40% of the vote to Popp's 34%, bumping candidate Inga Cotton, a parent activist, out of the race but forcing a runoff. The victor will face Rebecca Bell-Metereau, a Texas State University English and film professor who narrowly lost to Mercer in 2016. Disclosure: Texas State University has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors.