AT A GLANCE
- A new Texas law requires every public school classroom to display the Ten Commandments.
- Federal courts have already blocked more than two dozen districts, ruling the mandate likely violates the First Amendment.
- Teachers and staff are resigning rather than comply, while some districts are being sued by the state for delaying.
- Students and parents across Texas are split, turning the posters into a flashpoint over religion in public education.
Ten Commandments Texas Classrooms Law Ignites Clash Among Students, Parents and Teachers
Texas’ law requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in every public school classroom has pushed students, parents, and teachers into a statewide clash over faith, legality, and public education.
When high school theater teacher Gigi Cervantes realized she couldn’t avoid the mandate, she resigned, saying she refused to impose religious doctrine on her students. Her decision came as federal courts blocked more than two dozen districts from hanging the posters, including a ruling this week that the law violates the First Amendment. Similar laws in Arkansas and Louisiana have also been struck down, setting up an expected fight at the U.S. Supreme Court.
Despite the legal battles, many districts have already rolled out the posters. Some scrambled to source donated displays, while others, like Frisco ISD, printed thousands at their own expense even though the law only requires schools to hang donated posters. Other campuses are stuck without any posters to put up at all.
Classrooms where they are displayed have seen everything from guidance sheets for teachers fielding student questions to tense school board meetings.
Teachers like eighth grade history educator Dustin Parsons say they’re not evangelizing, framing the posters as historical context for America’s founding principles. Other districts, like Hays CISD, placed the Bill of Rights next to the Ten Commandments, hoping to balance constitutional context with the state requirement.
But Galveston ISD, which chose to wait for the courts before posting anything, is now facing lawsuits from the Texas attorney general, who has targeted multiple districts he says are out of compliance.
Supporters of the law see the commandments as moral guidance. Donors such as Rockwall County Commissioner Lorne Liechty say the values are fundamental to Christian teaching and the nation’s legal foundations. Some parents, like Adriana Bonilla near San Antonio, want the posters in their children’s classrooms to reinforce respect and responsibility.
Opponents say the displays send the wrong message in diverse public schools. Teachers are asking whether they can refuse to display the posters or provide equal space for other religions.
Legal experts advise them to redirect students’ questions back to families. Even in districts barred by court order from posting the commandments, anxiety is high among educators who worry about the impact on non-Christian students and how to address the displays’ meaning if they eventually go up.
Students themselves are split. At a high school in Carthage, the posters were the buzz of the halls, sparking debate between those who felt religion had no place in public classrooms and others who supported the mandate. The school’s band director resigned in protest, saying religion and politics don’t belong in public education. Some Christian families say the posters don’t bother them but express concern for classmates of other faiths who might feel alienated.
For Cervantes, who closed out her teaching career with a student production of Molière’s “The Imaginary Invalid,” the moment reflects a broader climate where educators feel pressured into silence. She says she refused to be complicit. Her students handed her a signed cast photo as she walked away from the job she loved, many telling her they respected her decision.
She worries that too many people in positions of power are staying quiet out of fear. She simply didn’t want to be one of them.
