Texas’ state education board, rocked by primary elections that could push the influential panel’s far-right leanings toward the center, is set to take its first vote on a new social studies curriculum that could reverberate in classrooms nationwide, reports the Associated Press. The board—long led by social conservatives who have advocated for ideas such as teaching Texas children more about the weaknesses of evolutionary theory—has worked on, and squabbled about, the social studies standards for months. The board’s ultimate decisions could affect textbook content around the country, because Texas is one of publishers’ biggest clients. A three-day meeting beginning March 10 is the first since voters in last week’s Republican primary handed defeats to two veteran conservatives, including former board chairman Don McLeroy, who lost to a moderate GOP lobbyist. McLeroy, a 10-year board veteran, has been one of the most prolific and polarizing members. The devout Christian conservative has been adamant on several issues, including that the Christian influences of the nation’s Founding Fathers are important to studying American history…
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