A 15-year-old student shot a teacher at a Texas high school and then fatally shot himself Monday, according to authorities, who were still investigating what led to the early morning attack.
No other injuries were reported at Hill Country College Preparatory High School in Bulverde, a small but growing city near San Antonio.
The teacher was taken to a nearby hospital. Comal County Sheriff Mark Reynolds said hours after the shooting that he did not know her condition.
“What happened today is something no community ever wants to face, but we prepare for something that we hope never occurs,” Reynolds said.
He said the student shot the teacher before turning the gun on himself. Reynolds said investigators were working to understand the relationship between the student and the teacher and looking into how the firearm was obtained.
The small campus of roughly 250 students was placed on lockdown shortly after 8:30 a.m., according to the school. One student told San Antonio television station KSAT that they heard loud bangs coming from a room on the second floor and then heard screaming.
Another student told the TV station that she heard five shots and yelling before her debate teacher told students to get inside a classroom.
Students were bused to a nearby middle school, where parents stood in long lines, some praying, as they waited to be reunited. Reynolds said the family members of the shooter had also gone into reunification line.
“We’re trying to collect as much information as we can from witnesses,” Reynolds said.
Jesse Lopez, a parent, told KSAT that it will be difficult to tell his daughter that she has to eventually go back to class.
“For one, she has autism, and she’ll be afraid to go back, she’ll be real afraid to go back,” Lopez said.
The school canceled classes for Tuesday but counselors would still be made available for students and families, principal Julie Wiley said in a statement. She did not provide details about the teacher's condition.
“Our hearts are with everyone impacted, especially that teacher, their family, and our school community,” Wiley said. “We know this has been a difficult day.”
The high school, which is part of the Comal Independent School District, focuses on academics and skills to prepare students for college, according to the district's website. Its curriculum is centered on science, technology, engineering, arts and math, known as STEAM, with electives that include cybersecurity and engineering.
The school opened in August 2020 with a freshman class. It has since grown to offer grades nine through 12.
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Associated Press reporter Heather Hollingsworth contributed to this report from Kansas City, Missouri.
This image taken from video provided by KSAT shows first responders outside after a student shot a teacher at Hill Country College Preparatory High School, Monday, March 30, 2026, in Bulverde, Texas. (KSAT via AP)
This image taken from video provided by KSAT shows first responders outside after a student shot a teacher at Hill Country College Preparatory High School, Monday, March 30, 2026, in Bulverde, Texas. (KSAT via AP)
This image taken from video provided by KSAT shows parents waiting in line outside Bulverde Middle School to be reunited with their children after a teacher was shot by a student at Hill Country College Preparatory High School, Monday, March 30, 2026, in Bulverde, Texas. (KSAT via AP)
Frustrating security lines dwindled at U.S. airports Monday, clearing the worst bottlenecks as Transportation Safety Administration officers began receiving backpay for working during the government shutdown.
Checkpoint lines that at times stretched to four hours at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport shrank to waits of 10 minutes or less on Monday. In other previous trouble spots such as Atlanta and Baltimore-Washington International Airport, travelers were moving smoothly to their flights.
After weeks of airport chaos, there was finally optimism for the beleaguered aviation system.
Weary travelers hope the overdue paychecks will end the seemingly endless security lines and missed flights many experienced. It remains unknown how long federal immigration officers will maintain a visible presence in airport terminals as the busy spring break travel season continues.
TSA workers told union leadership Monday that they received some — but not all — of their back pay, according to Johnny Jones, secretary-treasurer of the TSA chapter of the American Federation of Government Employees. He said the rest is expected by next week. Some employees also reported incorrect backpay amounts, including missing overtime, the union said.
Jones, who is also a TSA agent at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, said one colleague told him his bank account was already “back to zero” after covering his car and housing payments and late fees. Workers, he said, are relieved the money has arrived but worry it will disappear as quickly as it came.
“None of my colleagues feel like they’ve been made whole," Jones said. “Their finances are destroyed.”
The union said the TSA updated its furlough policy on Sunday, removing guidance that allowed officers to request a furlough if they could not report to work for reasons tied to the shutdown, such as lack of transportation or child care.
“Working without pay forced more than 500 officers to leave TSA and thousands were forced to call out,” acting TSA Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in announcing the delayed payday.
The union agreed with these numbers, but said those who could not afford to report for duty now “have disciplinary actions looming over their heads.”
“Backpay alone does not fix those problems,” the union said.
The AP emailed TSA and DHS seeking comment and additional details on the agency’s furlough guidance.
The DHS shutdown resulted in not only travel delays but also warnings of airport closures as TSA workers who were only just recovering financially from last fall's extended government shutdown stopped going to work. TSA employees had gone without pay since DHS funding lapsed in February.
Other agencies affected by this latest shutdown include the Secret Service and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
President Donald Trump on Friday ordered the Department of Homeland Security to pay TSA officers immediately to ease the lines plaguing airports. Trump had rejected bipartisan efforts to fund the TSA while negotiations over ICE continue with Democrats, who have refused to approve more funding without restraints on Trump’s immigration enforcement and mass deportation operations. Trump's order left other DHS employees unpaid.
Democrats are demanding that ICE agents wear cameras, identify themselves and operate without masks. They also want judges to decide whether to issue their warrants, and they want ICE raids to avoid schools, churches or other sensitive places.
Republicans and the White House have been willing to negotiate on some points, but a final agreement remains elusive.
On Monday, there were few signs of progress on Capitol Hill. Senators held a short session without considering the House bill, then resumed their two-week break.
The union again urged Congress to approve funding for the entire Department of Homeland Security. “To say we are utterly disgusted and disappointed with our elected officials is an understatement,” the union said.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday that Trump has offered to host an Easter Dinner for members of Congress who return to resolve the impasse. On Democrats' demands, she said “there has not been a change in policy.”
“It has always been the policy of this president and this administration to deport the worst of the worst illegal alien criminals,” Leavitt said.
As for the ICE agents Trump deployed to some airports a week ago to help with security, White House border czar Tom Homan said how long they stay depends on how quickly TSA employees return to work.
Associated Press contributors include Mary Clare Jalonick and Will Weissert in Washington.
Travelers wait in a lines to get through security at LaGuardia Airport in New York, Monday, March 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Stained-glass windows cast colorful shadows at LaGuardia Airport in New York, Monday, March 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
An estimated wait time sign stands in a TSA security line at George Bush Intercontinental Airport on Monday, March 30, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Airline passengers make their way to the security lines in Terminal E at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Sunday, March 29, 2026, in Houston. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)
A TSA agent checks passengers at the security checkpoint in Pittsburgh International Airport Monday, March 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
A traveler walks through TSA security lines at George Bush Intercontinental Airport on Monday, March 30, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
A TSA agent hands a passport back to a passenger at the security checkpoint in Pittsburgh International Airport Monday, March 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
A TSA agent hands a passport back to a passenger at the security checkpoint in Pittsburgh International Airport Monday, March 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Travelers wait in long security checkpoint lines at George Bush Intercontinental Airport Friday, March 27, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
A traveler reaches for a bottle of water being handed out while waiting in a security checkpoint line at George Bush Intercontinental Airport Friday, March 27, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
Airline passengers make their way through the security lines, next to a closed screening area, in Terminal C at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Sunday, March 29, 2026, in Houston. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)
A traveler moves in view of an air traffic control tower at Philadelphia International Airport in Philadelphia, Friday, March 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
