On Friday's show: We recap last night’s HISD Board of Managers monthly meeting, during which a vote is expected on the "District of Innovation" designation that would lengthen the school year, allow for the hiring of uncertified teachers, and change requirements for school counselors.

Also this hour: What a recent Texas Court of Criminal Appeals decision suggests about the expectations of appellate lawyers and judges, and what criminal defendants should know about the status of appeals they may believe are in progress on their behalf.

Then, from record-setting crowds expected at Houston airports over the holidays, to a ruling upholding the state’s ban on the use of TikTok on government-issued devices, to political phone calls headed your way powered by generative AI, we contemplate The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly of the week.

And listeners share the holiday songs that are meaningful to them in the Houston Matters Holiday Mix Tape.