In Waco Independent School District v. Gibson, 22 S.W.3d 849, 851 (Tex. 2000), Waco Independent School District filed a motion to dismiss for want of jurisdiction, asserting that Gibson had failed to exhaust administrative remedies. Id. The trial court granted the motion, in part, dismissing all but one of Gibson's claims. Id. On interlocutory appeal, the school district asserted both ripeness and standing as additional grounds to affirm the trial court's dismissal, although neither issue was raised before the trial court. Id. The court of appeals declined to address either ripeness or standing, concluding that because the school district failed to raise these issues before the trial court they were not "properly preserved for our review." Gibson v. Waco Indep. Sch. Dist., 971 S.W.2d 199, 200 (Tex. App.--Waco 1998), vacated by Waco Indep. Sch. Dist. v. Gibson, 22 S.W.3d 849 (Tex. 2000). The supreme court concluded that the court of appeals erred by failing to reach the ripeness and standing issues, noting that "because subject matter jurisdiction is essential to the authority of a court to decide a case, it cannot be waived and may be raised for the first time on appeal." Gibson, 22 S.W.3d at 851. In sum, the trial court, after a hearing, granted WISD's plea to the jurisdiction as to all but one of the plaintiff's claims. The supreme court held that on interlocutory appeal, WISD could add standing and ripeness challenges to its original assertion that the trial court lacked jurisdiction because the Gibsons had failed to exhaust their administrative remedies before bringing suit. The supreme court noted, however, that "the trial court record is replete with the district's assertions that the Gibsons' claim was not ripe." Id.