Court orders Galveston ISD to display Ten Commandments posters in classrooms
By Jaden Edison, The Texas Tribune
November 7, 2025
A district court judge on Thursday ordered the Galveston Independent School District to display posters of the Ten Commandments in its public school classrooms.
The school district’s leaders must comply with the order by Oct. 11, Galveston District Court Judge Jeth Jones ruled. Jones also scheduled a trial date for next June to resolve the dispute.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the Galveston, Round Rock and Leander school districts last year for allegedly not following a new state law requiring schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms while the legislation was challenged in federal court.
The ruling on Thursday only applies to Galveston. Following Thursday’s decision, Galveston School Board President Anthony Brown said district officials plan to follow the judge’s order, according to local news outlets.
Attorneys from Paxton’s office moved to drop their lawsuit against the remaining two districts earlier this year.
State lawmakers passed Senate Bill 10 during the 2025 legislative session, a mandate requiring schools to accept posters or framed copies of the Ten Commandments and display them in classrooms.
A federal appeals court has since ruled that Texas can force schools to hang the posters for all children to see. Meanwhile, the suing families have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to make the final decision on whether state leaders can enforce the law.
After SB 10 took effect, the three school districts received donated posters of the Ten Commandments, according to two lawsuits — the first against the Galveston district and the second against the Round Rock and Leander districts. Paxton accused the districts of not displaying them.
“We will closely monitor any possible litigation and consult with our legal counsel before making further decisions,” a Galveston spokesperson said in response at the time. “In the meantime, our focus remains on elevating instruction, valuing a respectful culture, and promoting a safe environment for students and staff.”
Leander school district officials said the lawsuit confused them, adding that the schools “accepted donated posters and has actively implemented the law in accordance with state requirements.”
“At no point has Leander ISD taken action to defy or disregard the law,” the district officials said. “Typically, the Attorney General’s Office contacts school districts for clarification prior to initiating action. Had the AG’s Office contacted Leander ISD, the District could have shared its spreadsheet tracking precisely the number of donated posters the District has received and where in the District the posters have been displayed in accordance with SB 10.”
Round Rock district officials told The Texas Tribune that it believed the new state law conflicted with “longstanding federal law regarding the separation of church and state” and that it was awaiting further guidance from the federal appeals court on how schools should proceed.
Last year, a federal judge barred 11 districts from enforcing the law, siding with the Texas families who argued that it allows state leaders to illegally promote their preferred religion. The families also said it violates their right to direct how their children learn about religion.
U.S. District Judge Fred Biery called the law unconstitutional, saying it “crosses the line from exposure to coercion” and that the case will likely reach the U.S. Supreme Court.
But a federal appeals court ruled that Texas’ and Louisiana’s laws did not violate the Constitution.
Supporters of the law have argued that the Ten Commandments are historically significant and teach students about American values. Conservative groups in recent years have pushed to infuse Christian values into public life.
Historians and religious scholars have repeatedly debunked the notion that America was founded as a Christian nation. Families and advocates of diverse religious backgrounds, including Christians, have pushed back against what they view as state attempts to coerce children into following a particular belief system.
This article first appeared on The Texas Tribune.