Allen ISD has its legislative priorities in order ahead of the 2027 Texas legislative session scheduled to start in January.

What’s happening: The district board of trustees approved four priorities focused on teacher recruitment and retention, school funding, local decision-making, and accountability for all publicly funded education organizations. The Sept. 28 action comes about a week after Acting Superintendent Kim McLaughlin spoke about legislative priorities during the Allen Chamber of Commerce’s State of Education event.

Quote of note: Board president Polly Montgomery said they have multiple opportunities to meet with members of the Texas Legislature ahead of the 2027 session.

“We start now in reaching out, which is why it’s so important to get these priorities tightened up and we’re all on the same page,” she said.

Fyzical Therapy and Balance Center is now open in Allen, a company representative said.

A closer look: The business offers orthopedic rehabilitation, balance therapy, occupational therapy, care for pelvic floor disorders and more, per its website.

• 105 N. Greenville Ave., Ste. 6, Allen

Six new restaurants are now open in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, offering a variety of dining experiences:

• LSA Burger Co. opened Aug. 13 in Celina, featuring a menu named after Texas music legends.
• BreadHaus opened Sept. 5 in Frisco, offering scratch-made artisan baked goods free of commercial yeast, preservatives and artificial additives.
• Luna Loco opened Aug. 21 in Keller, serving Mexican favorites like tostadas, enchiladas, street tacos and burritos.
• PopUp Bagels opened Aug. 21 in McKinney, selling bagels by the bag alongside a choice of several schmears.
• Original ChopShop opened Sept. 23 in Richardson, serving protein bowls, salads, sandwiches, all-day breakfast, juices and protein shakes.
• Hudson House opened Sept. 14 in Southlake, featuring a menu with burgers, sushi, a raw bar and martinis.

The Texas Education Agency is asking state lawmakers to spend $97.3 billion on K-12 education initiatives and staffing in the next two years, up from about $91 billion in the current state budget.

The details: During a Sept. 29 hearing on the agency's legislative appropriations request, Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath noted that the TEA is "largely a pass-through vehicle to fund schools around the state of Texas." This means that while funding would be allocated to the agency under Article III of the state budget, the majority of that money would be sent to school districts, outside of funds used to pay TEA staff and cover operations for associated entities, such as the State Board of Education.

The TEA is asking for about $49.6 billion for fiscal year 2027-28 and $47.7 billion for fiscal year 2028-29, totaling $97.3 billion for the 2028-29 biennium. Morath said those amounts would "preserve 100% of all funding for public schools" through the Foundation School Program, which is the state's main funding source for K-12 schools, and other initiatives.