Spring ISD and Klein ISD families starting the new school year will do so as Gov. Greg Abbott pushes to lock up educators convicted of sexual misconduct with students for at least 10 years, eliminating the probation-only outcomes that have let some Houston-area offenders avoid prison entirely.

Abbott announced the proposal Wednesday, Aug. 12, at a Lubbock roundtable with survivors and law enforcement. Under current law, an improper relationship between an educator and a student is a second-degree felony carrying two to 20 years, but judges can substitute probation or deferred adjudication. Abbott's plan would bar both, require sex-offender registration and block parole before the 10-year mark.

"Right now, that is the exception in Texas. I want that to become the rule in our state," Abbott said, referring to a 10-year prison sentence handed to former Lubbock ISD teacher James Tapley in March 2025.

The proposal lands as the Texas Education Agency reports a surge in misconduct investigations. TEA data cited by Abbott shows nearly 1,800 investigations into alleged inappropriate educator-student relationships opened during the current fiscal year, according to KPRC 2. That is up from roughly 580 such investigations in fiscal year 2025.

Klein ISD and the 'passing the trash' problem

The proposal carries a direct local echo. In May, Klein High School head football coach Nick Codutti was directed to step away from campus after the Harris County Sheriff's Office Special Victims Unit opened an investigation into allegations of an inappropriate relationship with a female student during his time at Tomball High School between 2017 and 2021. Klein ISD said at the time the allegations predate his Klein employment and do not appear connected to Klein students or staff. No criminal charges had been filed as of May 2026, the most recent public update.

Codutti's path illustrates what advocates call "passing the trash." He moved from Tomball ISD to Lamar CISD's Fulshear High School and then to Klein in 2025 without prior complaints surfacing publicly.

Separately, Klein Oak High School substitute teacher Kenneth Hartley, 81, was charged in 2025 with displaying harmful material to a minor after being caught watching pornography at his desk during class. And former elementary teacher Wilbert Sequeiros, who worked in both Houston ISD and Klein ISD, was arrested after years as a fugitive in Peru for sexually and physically assaulting at least seven children, Texas Scorecard reported.

Sentencing gaps Abbott wants to close

Completed Houston-area cases show wide variation. Former Brazoswood High School teacher Brandyn Hargrove received 10 years of probation and no prison time after pleading guilty to 12 felony counts of sexual assault and indecency. Former Houston ISD teacher Dale Vanwright received 10 years of deferred-adjudication probation for indecency with a child. Under Abbott's proposal, both would have faced a minimum decade behind bars.

Other sentences fell below the proposed floor: former New Caney High School teacher Samantha Cummings received four years; former Houston ISD teacher Abdurahman Milani, seven years; former KIPP Houston teacher Preston Zimmerman, eight years.

Advocate calls proposal incomplete

Terri Miller, president of the National Center to Stop Educator Sexual Abuse, Misconduct and Exploitation, told KPRC the proposal is necessary but insufficient on its own.

"Making strong penalties to be a strong deterrent from predation upon children is very important," Miller said. "But it's a reactionary type of proposal."

Miller's organization wants Texas to require districts to ask job applicants whether they have been the subject of misconduct allegations and to compel former employers to disclose relevant information. TEA launched a statewide pre-screening database called SEMARC in May to prevent accused individuals from moving between districts undetected.

What comes next

Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows pledged at the Lubbock event that the House would work with Abbott during the next legislative session. No bill has been filed.

The session begins in January 2027. Earlier this year, Education Commissioner Mike Morath appointed Levi Fuller as the state's first Inspector General for Educator Misconduct. Abbott also said the state must develop safer ways for students to report warning signs and ensure TEA responds promptly to district submissions.

Spring ISD has not been named in a specific educator misconduct case in available reporting. Neither district has commented publicly on the proposal.