The Children’s Advocacy Center of Collin County, which exists to provide safety, justice and healing to victims of child abuse, has seen a a shift in where clients are seeking services and increased demand, CEO Dan Powers said.

The big picture: With trauma-informed staff, the organization provides forensic interviews, family advocacy programs and therapy, all at no cost to victims and their nonoffending family members.

Since the organization opened the Speese Campus in 2022, its second location in McKinney, staff have seen a shift in where clients are seeking services. In 2023, the majority of all forensic interviews took place at the Plano campus, Powers said. However, as growth increases in the northern part of the county, the organization saw more clients at its McKinney campus in 2024 and 2025.

“As the county grows north, we're seeing that shift,” Powers said. “What's happening in Plano is people are staying in their homes and kids are moving away, and so we're seeing a little bit of decrease.”

The McKinney Education Foundation is welcoming a new CEO this spring.

Karen Walker will serve as the next CEO of the McKinney Education Foundation, or MEF, according to an April 6 news release. CEO Sheila Due has served in the position since 2023 and will conclude her tenure May 15.

The specifics: Walker joins MEF from Anna ISD, where she served as director of communications and executive director of the Anna Education Foundation, the release states. Her experience also includes roles with Region 10 Education Service Center and leadership positions across Humble, Celina and Van Alstyne ISDs, per the release.

What they're saying: “Karen is a proven leader with a deep understanding of how to connect community, communication, and mission,” MEF board chair Mark Kever said in the release. “She brings the leadership and energy to build on MEF’s momentum and expand our impact for students and educators across McKinney ISD. We are confident in her leadership and excited for what lies ahead.”

A Raising Cane’s support office relocation and new landscaping at Firefly Park in Frisco are two of many new projects filed recently with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.

Here are five of the most expensive permits filed with TDLR in the past week.

1. Raising Cane’s Dallas Restaurant Support Office relocation
Three floors of an existing building in Plano will be renovated to become the new Dallas-area support office for Raising Cane’s, according to a TDLR filing. Plano City Council first approved the relocation in August 2024, per previous reporting. Construction is estimated to take less than a year and a half to complete.

• Location: 5320 Legacy Drive, Plano

• Estimated timeline: June 1, 2026-Nov. 29, 2027

• Estimated cost: $112 million

2. Firefly Park retail site
Firefly Park’s retail site will have civil construction and landscaping along Fireglass Way, according to a TDLR filing. Construction is estimated to take about a year and a half.

• Location: Fireglass Way, Frisco

• Estimated timeline: April 1, 2026-Sept. 1, 2027

• Estimated cost: $25 million

Funding for Texas’ education savings account program is expected to dry up before it reaches all low-income applicants, the state comptroller’s office announced April 2.

The overview: More than a quarter of a million students applied for the first year of Texas Education Freedom Accounts, which will give participating families access to state funds to send their children to private school or homeschool them.

The details: Most eligible students will be placed on a waitlist for the 2026-27 school year, as the $1 billion program is expected to serve between 90,000 and 100,000 students. State officials said all funds are expected to go to students with disabilities, their siblings and children from low-income families.

The state will use a four-tier, randomized lottery system to determine who is accepted. Once funding runs out, the remaining students will be placed on a waitlist.

How it works: Students with disabilities can receive up to $30,000 each in ESA funding, depending on their individual needs. Other accepted students will receive $10,474 for private education or $2,000 for homeschooling.