🚁Lisa Atherton moving to top job at Bell; All bets off on latest NBA scandal; Pay off national debt costs each of us $327k.

Bell president and CEO Lisa Atherton has been appointed president and CEO of Bell’s parent company Textron. Atherton, who has led Bell since April 2023, will assume the new role Jan. 4, 2026. She replaces Scott C. Donnelly, who has led Textron for 17 years. A successor to lead Bell helicopter manufacturing has not been named. Donnelly will become Textron’s executive chairman, leading the company’s board of directors “and providing advice and counsel to the CEO."

The Texas Education Agency has ousted the elected board of the Fort Worth Independent School District and taken control of the district, the second-largest takeover in state history (Houston). It may appoint a new superintendent to oversee the campuses, though current superintendent Karen Molinar is under consideration. One Fort Worth campus -- Leadership Academy at Forest Oak Sixth Grade -- did not meet academic accountability standards for five consecutive years and it was closed at the end of the 2023-24 school year, but state law required an intervention to investigate.

American Airlines reported record revenue of $13.7 billion for the quarter and a smaller adjusted net loss of $0.17 per share. AA raised its full-year adjusted earnings per shares to a range of $0.65 to $0.95 and expects fourth-quarter adjusted EPS to be between $0.45 and $0.75.

Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, four mafia families and more than 30 people in 11 states were hit with federal charges as part of a sweeping investigation into illegal sports gambling and poker rigging schemes. The charges included wire fraud, money laundering, extortion, robbery and illegal gambling, FBI Director Kash Patel said, before adding "the fraud is mind-blogging."

The 2023 Texas law requiring booksellers and publishers to rate their books based on sexual content and references has been declared unconstitutional by a federal judge in Waco. He declared House Bill 900, also known as the READER Act, violates the constitution. The ruling makes permanent a lower court's temporary injunction that the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals later upheld.

Fort Worth council members voted to change the name of a one-mile portion of White Settlement Road in response to a street re-naming application submitted by the developer of Westside Village. The street signs change Oct. 28. The city did not mention re-imbursement to business owners for the charges they incur making changes. 

The DFW Car & Toy Museum in north Fort Worth is a collection of classic cars and rare collectibles. However, the unexpected crowd favorite is Fast Fred, a fully autonomous robotic floor scrubber with its racing-inspired personality. 

Lockheed Martin is considering modifying existing missiles into lower-cost designs. “We have really capable systems ...that [are] already qualified on a whole bunch of airframes and can actually be turned into a modular system that could grow or shrink,” Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control President Tim Cahill said.

Colleyville-based Bone Solutions, an orthopedic-biologics company specializing in magnesium-based technologies, announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted pediatric clearance for its Mg OSTEOCRETE and Mg OSTEOINJECT products. The clearance allows use of the technologies in pediatric patients aged six years and older. Its use is for minimally invasive outpatient treatments of unicameral bone cysts.

The U.S. Patent and Trademarks Office awarded Fort Worth-based Paslay Group a trademark registration on the firm's proprietary Executive Program Management™ model used by airport owners to effectively deliver complex capital development programs on time and within budget.

A MESSAGE FROM BURT LADNER REAL ESTATE:

This Texas Christian University area home at 3129 Stadium Drive is steps away from every Horned Frogs sporting event. The 4-bedroom, 4.5-bath estate features an open floor plan, chef’s kitchen, multiple balconies and a four-car garage. An outdoor kitchen, pool and multiple terraces are on the grounds. Also included is a guest house with private entrance and a rec room. Offered at $3,995,000 by Suzanne Burt.

Innovation in north Texas happens on corporate campuses and at startups, in tech labs and on factory floors—across industries being re-imagined. D CEO and Dallas Innovates name Ross Perot Jr. their first Legacy of Innovation recipient, and Mike Berry/Taylor Sheridan and Wade Myers are among 80 finalists for awards.

Speaking at the North Dallas Chamber of Commerce’s annual Aviation Breakfast, Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan confirmed that the airline will have a presence at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport at some point. "It is not if, it’s when,” Jordan said, via the Dallas Business Journal. “We will be at D-FW.”

Trinity Metro has partnered with Edible Ideas, a Texas-based hospitality company known for Beyond the Box Catering, to manage and operate two venues at its Fort Worth T&P Station – the historic ballroom and the former T&P Tavern. Edible Ideas will operate the ballroom as a wedding and event venue alongside a wine bar, which will feature a full-service kitchen for catering.

Two Federal judges used generative artificial intelligence to draft factually inaccurate court orders, according to Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley. The orders misquoted state law, referenced individuals who didn’t appear in the case and attributed fake quotes to defendants, among other significant inaccuracies.

Tricon Residential has opened two build-to-rent townhome communities, including a 166-unit one in Saginaw. The average rent in Tricon Saginaw is $2,563. Tricon is delivering these homes in partnership with Blackstone, which has invested nearly $100 million in the two developments.

Arlington’s Founders Arena selects six global WealthTech startups for its fifth accelerator cohort. The focus is on the future of financial services in the age of AI. 

Retiring state Sen. Brian Birdwell (R-Granbury) has been nominated by the Trump Administration to be an Assistant Secretary of Defense.

D-FW International Airport's Terminal B has joined the Texas majority. After a re-configuration, the exits to reach the terminal are to the right. 

Child Care Associates, in partnership with the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center, has released results of the North Texas Child Care Workforce Study. Key findings were the need for 10,000 educators, more education and training for educators, and greater retention.

Prices climbed and attendance dropped, according to State Fair of Texas officials. Still, there were more than two million attendees. See how many attended for the Texas-OU game, the Fair's largest attendance day.

Daily digit: $37.9 trillion = The U.S. national debt as of Oct. 22, 2025. That amounts to $327,062 per taxpayer.

Significant stat: ≈30,000 = The number of apartment units under construction in D-FW, the fewest since 2015 but still one of the largest pipelines in the country.

Announcements: 

• Whitley Penn: (Effective Jan.1) Names Tommy Byrd partner-in-charge of tax, Irfan Dossani partner-in-charge of advisory, and Jake Morris partner-in-charge of client accounting & advisory services. 

• Arlington: Mayor Jim Ross says he will run for re-election in 2026.

• American Airlines: Names Nathaniel Pieper Chief Commercial Officer. He is the former CEO of Oneworld Alliance. 

• New Hope Equine Assisted Therapy: Adds Denise Bruzzone, a luxury hospitality sales and marketing business owner and leader, to its Board. Announces Kimberly Rogers and Emily Rogers Hicks as New Hope Gala Chairs for 2026.

• LB Contract Supply: Names Rob Spoonts Chief Operating Officer. 

• Financial Planning Association: Promotes D-FW-based Dennis J. Moore to CEO. He had been COO and interim CEO.

• Texas Veterans Commission: Awards Tarleton State University its Silver-level Veteran Education Excellence Recognition Award for serving student veterans and their families. 

• Communication Solutions Group: Selects Cassie Morrison to lead D-FW office of Pennsylvania company.

• ECI Software: Names Andres Ricaurte President of the new payments division.

• Texas by Nature: Selects Acme Brick Commpany as the No. 1 honoree on its 2025 Texan by Nature 20 — a statewide recognition of companies demonstrating exemplary commitment to conservation and sustainability.

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