HOUSTON – Houston ISD superintendent Dr. Terry Grier is resigning his post effective early next year.
Grier has been in the position since 2009.
Standing before a packed foyer at the district's headquarters, Grier said, "Effective March 1 of 2016, I would be stepping down as superintendent of the HISD."
Grier said he has led the country's seventh-largest district of 215,000 students to see the graduation rate increase to an all-time high while dropout rates have fallen by more than 50 percent.
"It has really been an honor and I have been humbled by the opportunity to come and live and work in such a wonderful community and such a great school system. Time flies when you're having fun," said Grier.
After the announcement, Grier told KPRC 2 that he has many options. But he said he will probably choose something involving education and children. But first he said he will focus on this health.
"Right now I'm trying to get through one knee replacement surgery and have another one scheduled. But it's going to be a lot of hard work between now and March 1. We have a lot to do," he said.
In a wide-ranging interview with KPRC 2's Khambrel Marshall on Thursday, Grier said he is resigning because the district is in much better shape than when he came in the summer of 2009. He is 65. He's had one knee replacement surgery and is scheduled for another soon. He has an aging father with Alzheimer's disease who needs more attention.Â
Grier said his relationship with the HISD board is good and is not a factor in his decision to step down. His contract is up in June 2016 and he said now is a good time to step down to give the HISD board plenty of time to do a search for his replacement to make it as seamless as possible. He said he has good relationships with key members of the community as well.
The $1.9 billion bond approved by voters in 2012 will need more money to complete planned projects because the inflation rate of construction costs has gone through the roof, according to Grier. He said low interest rates have allowed them to refinance other bonds to raise $200 million to $215 million to cover any shortfall from the bond.
Grier said the recent grade-changing incidents at several schools is not a sign of a systemic problem within HISD and he will continue to have a policy of firing anyone who cheats in the grading and testing process.
He said he is aware of his reputation as someone who is impatient and has made a lot of changes, quicker than many are comfortable with but says it's about what's best for the kids, not making adults comfortable.
In 2013, HISD won the Broad Prize and received national acclaim as the best urban school district in America as well as $550,000 in scholarships for students.
To see more of the interview with Dr. Terry Grier, tune in to "Houston Newsmakers" with Khambrel Marshall this Sunday at 10 a.m.
Grier released the following statement Thursday afternoon:
"Dear HISD Community:
Six years ago, you welcomed me to this great city. Today, I am writing to thank you for the honor of trusting me with your children's education, and to let you know that effective March 1, 2016, I will be stepping down from my position as Houston ISD superintendent. I hope our team exceeded your expectations.
Your support came in many forms, and all of it was needed. You volunteered to read with students. You built playgrounds and you stocked our libraries. You donated prizes to encourage our students to perform at higher levels than they ever thought possible. You contributed millions to help us hire tutors for our neediest students in our toughest schools. When we came to you with a plan to rebuild high schools in neighborhoods across Houston so that our students would no longer have to look at suburban school buildings with envy, almost 70 percent of you voted in favor.
Today, HISD is considered the best urban school district in America. There's a reason for that. While cities across the nation have abandoned their urban schools, Houston has embraced and invested in them. In big-city school districts elsewhere, mass school closures and teacher layoffs are common and enrollment numbers are plummeting. Not in Houston. We've added 15,000 students to our district the past six years and we've opened innovative new schools such as the Energy Institute High School and the Baylor College of Medicine Academy at Ryan that showcase our city's leading industries. We now have more than 50 dual-language schools where students are becoming proficient in Spanish, Mandarin Chinese and Arabic, capitalizing on our city's great diversity and leading role in this global economy.
Our great team accomplished much more over the past six years, and you can read more about our students' achievements here. I also encourage you to watch and share this short video I recorded thanking Houston for welcoming me to the family. It has been an honor to serve with you, and I know you will rally behind whomever our Board of Education chooses as my replacement. That's what Houston does. Thank you."