A recent report on disciplinary actions in Round Rock ISD shows out-of-school suspensions and alternative school placements are declining, as in-school suspensions rose slightly.

District administrators said this is due to a targeted effort to keep students on campus and, if possible, in the classroom.

Explained: Out-of-school suspensions dropped by 43% between the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school years, the report shows.

Officials attributed this decrease to the following:

• Requiring multiple approvals to place a student in OSS or DAEP

• Using district data to pinpoint common misbehavior patterns at the campus level and address them

• Using a root-cause intervention model to support students rather than penalize them, including behavior coaching, classroom "timeouts" and check-ins with school counselors

• The reclassification of THC e-cigarettes from a mandatory expulsion to DAEP placement

• District penalization for high DAEP placement rates

What they're saying: "This is a passion area of mine—keeping students on campus and making sure that they're in the classroom and we're developing the whole child," said Zach Oldham, who oversees discipline and alternative education program placements.

From a seasonal Halloween store opening to a brewery bringing a taproom to Round Rock, check out these 20 area business updates.

Spirit Halloween

The store sells costumes, decorations and other spooky merchandise and will remain open until Nov. 2. After Oct. 31, the store will begin discounting merchandise, according to a store representative.

• Opened Sept. 2

• 2701A Parker Drive, Ste. 400, Round Rock

Cottonwood Creek Taproom

An extension of Hutto-based Cottonwood Creek Brewery, the taproom will have new and familiar brews. It is locally owned by Bobby Delmonico.

• Opening in November or December

• 1201 E. Palm Valley Blvd., Round Rock

Snooze is coming to a new development off SH 130 in Pflugerville, officials with the breakfast restaurant told Community Impact.

Read all about it: The eatery, which serves a variety of breakfast and brunch classics as well as seasonal menu items, is targeting a May or June opening.

The announcement marks the Denver-based restaurant's second attempt to come to the area. In early 2025, the business scrapped a plan to come to the same retail center.

Snooze has three Austin locations and one in Cedar Park.

Quote of note: "We can’t wait to open our doors, get to know Pflugerville and give the community a new reason to look forward to mornings," Jordan Russell, Snooze's director of brand marketing, said in an email.

Additions to Leander High School, a new H-E-B in Buda and an apartment in Austin are among the five most expensive projects filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation in the metro this week.

1. Leander ISD high school modernization ($68 million): This project involves building additions and renovations at Leander High School.

2. H-E-B ($61.2 million): A new H-E-B grocery store is coming to Buda, with construction set to begin next spring.

3. The Ridge Apartments ($11.8 million): This project involves the construction of a four-story multifamily building

4. Residence Inn ($11 million): The hotel brand is coming to Hutto, with construction set to begin in December.

5. Texas State University pitching lab and batting cages ($4 million): This project includes an addition to the existing softball pitching facility and a new pre-engineered metal building to house baseball's pitching and hitting facility.

Heavy rainfall and potential flash flooding will threaten large parts of Texas this week, Gov. Greg Abbott told reporters Sept. 28.

The overview: The governor pointed to severe flooding that occurred in South-Central Texas in mid-July, damaging property, sweeping cars off roadways and killing two people. This week's storms will impact "a far more vast portion of the state" than the July flooding, he warned.

The details: Abbott said heavy rains will "really dramatically affect" the majority of the state on Sept. 30, and the National Weather Service noted that "North-Central Texas is a particular concern."

"We don't have the information needed right now to advise Texans on exactly what's going to happen in our rivers," Abbott told reporters. "I can tell you this, however: Everyone should expect the rivers to rise."