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Complexified

Texas Created a Program to Fund Religious Schools. So Why Are Muslim Schools Missing?

March 17, 2026·18 min
Episode Description from the Publisher

Muslim families in Texas are asking: does school choice include us? A Houston father went to enroll his kids in Texas's new school voucher program and discovered his school wasn't on the list — along with every other Islamic school in the state. Texas launched one of the country's largest school choice programs promising families public funds for religious private schools, but roughly a hundred Muslim schools were excluded without official explanation. State officials have posted publicly about not funding schools tied to terrorist organizations, pointing to Governor Abbott's designation of CAIR as a foreign terrorist organization — a designation the federal government has not made. Now families are suing with a March 17th deadline bearing down. Amanda Henderson talks with RNS reporter Fiona André and editor-in-chief Paul O'Donnell about the lawsuits, the communities affected, and what this moment reveals about who "school choice" was really built for. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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