Plano Independent School District has come under fire in recent weeks over alleged antisemitic incidents, with state officials and parents speaking out against the purported issues.
The allegations have drawn significant attention from two powerful oversight bodies: the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and the Office of Attorney General Ken Paxton.
Multiple sources have confirmed that the TEA opened an investigation into these claims, though there has been no indication about potential discoveries made by the agency.
Meanwhile, Paxton announced on August 28 that his office was opening an investigation into the district and requesting documents to assist in the inquiry.
Paxton’s office wrote in a news release about the investigation that students in Plano ISD have allegedly “been subjected to biased materials that advance a pro-Palestinian worldview and that school officials have provided ‘excused’ absences to students participating in pro-Palestinian walkouts.”
The Dallas Express spoke with multiple parents from the district about these allegations, but only one parent was prepared to speak on the record due to a fear of retaliation from the district.
These parents claim that, despite repeated incidents, district leaders have failed to take meaningful action to prevent harassment and discrimination against Jewish students.
Rob Ingwer is a parent in the district and highlighted a few specific incidents that have allegedly taken place.
Ingwer told DX that one of the incidents took place in November 2024 and involved an alleged code of conduct and dress code violation.
“A student came to school wearing a politically charged message, specifically with the slogan, right, of ‘Free Palestine.’ This is a situation where kids were coming to school with sweatshirts and shirts with ‘Free Palestine,’ ‘From the River to the Sea,’ which, you know, showed Palestine over Israel, which essentially, right, was a moniker for the eradication of the Jewish,” he explained.
“Further, it was reported that students then proceeded to approach the victim, the child, right, and directly asked the victim, ‘Are you pro-Palestinian or not?’ In which the victim proceeded to not answer out of fear because these are, you know, young children.”
Ingwer then told The Dallas Express that the principal of the school where the incident took place provided the following statement in response: “Political discourse, even if it makes a student feel uneasy, is allowed so long as students do not create a disruption to the school environment.”
Ingwer followed up with the principal of this school, writing in an email to question whether this incident would be a violation of the student code of conduct.
“Now, I wrote, ‘Does this level of behavior not rise to the level of calling a child names using discriminatory language or threatening the victim?’”
“That’s in the code of conduct. So I viewed that as threatening the victim, intimidating the victim, and that’s against the student code of conduct,” Ingwer told DX.
Ingwer proceeded to detail another incident that took place in the district.
This incident allegedly involved a female middle school student sitting at a lunch table with a group of friends before being accosted by another student.
“Again, in this incident, the aggressive student asks the victim where the victim was from, with the victim stating she’s from Israel.” Thereupon, the student responded verbally, “‘F–k you, free Palestine,’” Ingwer explained.
According to Ingwer, the school stated after the incident that “it was discovered that the victim wasn’t sitting in her assigned table at lunch, and that if the victim had just sat at her assigned table, this incident would never have occurred.”
“So you can hear it, they are victim-blaming. They’re blaming the victim,” said Ingwer.
Ingwer later highlighted why he has become so involved in fighting for his community within the district, explaining to DX that he is looking to create meaningful change for his children.
“…I got involved very quickly because this is my community. This is my town. And I don’t want my children growing up in an environment where they have to hide being a Jew, where they should not be proud of who they are and where they come from.”
Multiple state officials have already spoken out against the alleged incidents in Plano ISD, with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s press secretary, Andrew Mahaleris, confirming that the governor is aware of the allegations in a statement provided to The Dallas Express.
“Governor Abbott takes these allegations of antisemitism seriously and has directed the Texas Education Agency to investigate. Texas remains steadfast in its support for Israel and Jewish communities in Texas and around the world,” wrote Mahaleris in a statement.
The Dallas Express has reached out to the Texas Education Agency for a statement regarding this investigation, but no response has been recorded at this time.
However, Rep. Matt Shaheen (R-Plano) provided DX with a comment concerning this matter, writing that “Antisemitism is disgusting and has no place in Texas, especially in our schools.”
“Everything must be done to ensure our Jewish students can learn in a safe environment. I am receiving updates from the Texas Education Agency and will remain engaged until there is a satisfactory outcome.”
The Dallas Express also reached out to both Plano ISD Superintendent Theresa Williams and the Plano ISD School Board for additional comments regarding the allegations, with the district pointing to a statement that is publicly available on its website:
“Plano ISD unequivocally rejects antisemitism, racism and all forms of hate, and takes every allegation of discrimination with the utmost seriousness. Plano ISD does not tolerate antisemitic or hateful behavior—any such act is reprehensible and is addressed to the fullest extent permitted by law and in strict accordance with our Student Code of Conduct, which explicitly prohibits antisemitism. Our district proudly reflects the rich diversity of our community and honors the cultural and religious traditions that shape the lives of our students.”
“Recently, statements on social media and a press release from the Texas Attorney General have suggested Plano ISD promotes or facilitates antisemitism. These claims are false and run counter to the district’s values, policies and ongoing actions.”
No comments have been provided to DX on behalf of Williams at this time.
Moving forward, Ingwer said he has heard that Plano ISD is attempting to improve the safety of Jewish students in the district.
“We hope that there’s enough pressure now politically that Theresa [Williams] and the board are going to crack down on this substantially and take action,” Ingwer said.
“Now, we do know, we have friends that have older kids that are in these schools. We do know there has been significantly more training in the schools. Antisemitism has been a point of dialogue with students and really an emphasis on antisemitism in the school district.”