Cy-Fair ISD students and staff will get a week-long fall break from school starting in the 2026-27 academic year.

What you need to know: The Districtwide Educational Improvement Council, made up of teachers, parents and other community members, presented its recommended calendar for the 2026-27 school year to the board of trustees during a Nov. 6 work session. The board approved the calendar at its Nov. 10 meeting.

CFISD students, teachers and staff will receive a break from school Oct. 12-16 next year, according to the new calendar.

Why now?: DEIC member and teacher David Hunt told the board of trustees the council has been looking to add a fall break for several years to make CFISD more competitive compared to neighboring districts. The new calendar also includes better grading period symmetry for teachers, he said. 

"What's good for teachers is always what's good for kids," Hunt said at the Nov. 6 work session. 

Harris Health officials will hold public town hall meetings with community members in all four Harris County commissioners' precincts to discuss the proposed land acquisition for the Ben Taub Hospital expansion within Hermann Park.

What you need to know: Harris Health officials are in the process of a major expansion of Ben Taub Hospital, which would incorporate 8.9 acres of Hermann Park.

Digging deeper: The expansion is backed by a $2.5 billion bond package approved by Harris County voters in 2023, which supports Harris Health’s multiyear facilities plan and includes the addition of approximately 100 private patient rooms and expanded surgical capacity through a new patient tower adjacent to Ben Taub Hospital. The current campus couldn’t be expanded due to infrastructure limitations, officials said, and a lack of available space within the hospital’s current footprint.

The event: For Harris County Precinct 3, the town hall meeting will take place Nov. 17 at 6:45 p.m. at the George H. W. Bush Community Center, located at 6827 Cypresswood Drive, Spring.

There are several turkey trots taking place on Thanksgiving day across the Greater Houston area.

Addi's Faith Turkey Day 5K & Kids Wishbone 1K: This Thanksgiving morning event will include a 5K for all ages and a 1K option for ages 3-12. Proceeds will benefit Addi's Faith Foundation in their mission to fund pediatric cancer research and assist families as they care for their child with cancer.

• Nov. 27, 8-11 a.m.
• $25-$50
• Town Center Park, 8 N. Main St., Kingwood

• Nov. 27, 8 a.m.
• Free
• 6501 Memorial Drive, Houston

• Nov. 27, 8 a.m. (run), 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. (feast)
• $40 (run), free (feast)
• 12100 Champion Forest Drive, Houston

Texas’ power grid will likely remain stable in December and January, recent reports from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas show. However, grid conditions could become tight if a winter storm hits large swaths of Texas, driving up demand for electricity.

The overview: ERCOT, which operates the electric grid for 90% of Texas, found in a Nov. 7 report that there should be “sufficient generating capacity available” to serve customers throughout January.

ERCOT forecasts that the tightest period this winter will be from 7-8 a.m. daily, when little to no solar power is being produced. During that time, ERCOT found the chances of a grid emergency are 1.81% in December and 1.4% in January.

More details: If a severe winter storm causes demand on the Texas grid to near record levels, there is a roughly 35% chance of a grid emergency in December and a less than 10% chance in January, ERCOT reported. Texans last experienced a grid emergency in September 2023, and the grid withstood three cold snaps in early 2025.